A Tangled Web
by racefh853629
Summary: How hard can it be to keep a web of misconceptions intact?
1. Prologue

A/N: I don't own NCIS, CBS, or any other known entity including (but not limited to) Matilda, The Addams Family, and It's A Wonderful Life. I do, however, own Keri (initially mentioned) and a few other characters that will pop up along the way. This story takes place (sort of) during the season 7 storyline. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Prologue

_**December 1, 1990**_

_Her tiny fingers wrapped gently around his, squeezing it with as much might as a newborn could muster. His heart swelled as he smiled down at this precious angel, a miracle if there ever was one, and all he could do was try to keep his emotions in check._

_Behind him, Keri laughed._

"_Shut up," he muttered, glancing briefly up at Keri before looking back down at the newborn in his arms. The one he vowed to always protect until the day he died._

"_What should we name her?" Keri asked softly._

_He sat down beside her, watching as she adjusted the tiny pink blanket. "I don't know," he replied._

"_Wednesday?"_

"_It's not even a Wednesday, and there's no way I'm naming our daughter after a creepy character in _The Addams Family_."_

_Keri laughed again. "Okay, you pick."_

_He bit his lip, thinking. "Matilda."_

"_So, no to the creepy _Addams_ chick, but you're okay with a child witch?"_

"_She wasn't a witch. She was an incredibly gifted child."_

"_When did you _ever_ read the book?"_

_He shrugged. "Lit class last year. Modern English Authors."_

_She rolled her eyes. "What, was it the lowest one you could find?"_

_He glared at her. "Hey."_

_She smirked playfully. "Anyways, I don't know how I feel about Matilda. We'll make that a maybe."_

"_Okay."_

"_What about…"_

* * *

_**December 24, 2009**_

He put the car in park before turning the car off, sighing as he rested his forearms against the steering wheel. Not that he didn't love traditions or even spending time with his surrogate family at the holidays, but he just wasn't into it this year.

Something wasn't right, just as it hadn't been since last year. Not since the moment Ziva asked him if he missed having a family around the holidays. He hadn't been able to answer then, and he sure as hell couldn't say anything now.

A soft knock at his window broke his concentration, and he looked over to find McGee standing there. He nodded at Tim before opening the door and climbing out of the car.

"You okay?" McGee asked.

"Fine," he replied, façade in place.

McGee nodded and let it go as the two of them made their way up Ducky's driveway.

* * *

After dinner, the team was sitting around a fire in Ducky's den as _It's a Wonderful Life_ began to roll the end credits in the background. Palmer was falling asleep on the couch, courtesy of Ducky's curiously strong eggnog. Gibbs, Jack, and Ducky were talking, while McGee and Ziva were trying to keep a mischievous, and somewhat drunk, Abby from drawing on Palmer's face with a Sharpie.

All in all, it was another successful Christmas Eve.

When his phone rang, it woke up Palmer, and he briefly glanced down at the caller ID before sighing softly and standing up. He flipped his phone open and answered with a soft and calculated, "DiNozzo."

"Junior," the familiar voice of his father rang out as he made his way out of the room.

* * *

Tony was still sitting in Ducky's dining room, staring out the window, half an hour after the phone call when Gibbs made his way into the room. "You and Jack taking off?" Tony asked before Gibbs could say a word, keeping his back to the older man.

"Yeah," he replied softly. "You okay?"

He shook his head. "I'm fine."

"The phone call…"

"Dad's gonna be too busy tomorrow to call and wish his son a Merry Christmas." His tone had long since lost the bitterness in that statement, reducing it more to a sad report than anything else.

"Hmm."

Tony simply nodded, his vision still fixed outside.

"He send a gift this year?" Gibbs asked.

Tony snorted softly. "I'm not sure whether I should actually open it, or just return it," he replied.

Gibbs chuckled quietly.

"Abby ever start drawing on Palmer's face?"

"Nah. Never fell back asleep."

Tony smiled slightly.

"Might wanna get back, though, before she sends out the search party."

"I'll be there in a minute."

Gibbs nodded, turning and walking out of the room. After the briefest of seconds, Tony followed suit, heading into the living room.

* * *

"There you are," Ducky said. "We had all wondered where you'd gone off to."

"Just talkin' to my dad," Tony replied, forcing a smile.

"Oh."

The knowing tone resounded in the facial features of everyone in the room, save Jack, as they had all worked with Tony long enough to know how strained his relationship with his father was.

"What's he up to?" Jack asked, hoping to make conversation while everyone else in the room waited nervously for the answer.

"I don't really know," Tony responded. "He's always doing something at Christmas, though."

Jack nodded. "He a good man?"

Tony shrugged. "He did the best he could."

"C'mon, Dad," Gibbs said softly, effectively putting an end to the interrogation. "Let's get home, huh?"

"Right," Jack said. "Night, all. Merry Christmas, and Happy Hanukkah."

The group shared their well-wishes before Jack and Gibbs left. The others followed suit, with McGee designated to drive them home, until it was just Tony who remained at Ducky's place. The older man poured them both a small glass of Scotch before passing one off to Tony and taking a seat across from him.

"Remember when you said you didn't want me to know where you lived?" Tony joked.

Ducky laughed softly. "Indeed," he replied. "Although, that was more for your protection from my mother."

Tony smiled.

"So, your father called?"

Tony shrugged. "He does every year, usually later in the night on Christmas Eve. Always says he's got so many other things to do the next day that he wanted to be sure he called me."

"You don't believe that's the case?"

Tony sipped his drink. "I don't know that I ever did."

"Why is that?"

"You'd have to meet my father to understand."

"Is he a good man?" Ducky asked, reiterating Jack's earlier question.

"Depends on who you ask," Tony replied genuinely.

"I'm asking you."

Tony sighed. "Like I said, he did the best he could. I'm not sure he ever wanted kids in the first place. And of all the kids he could've had, he got me."

"You're a good man, Anthony."

Tony snorted softly, taking a drink from the glass. "He doesn't seem to think so. But, then again, I stopped needing his approval a long time ago, so it works out."

Ducky nodded, taking a drink from his own glass. "But it's not your father that has you melancholy this year. Perhaps worse than last year."

Tony shook his head. "You'd think by now I'd know better than to think I could pull one over on you," he said.

"You're better at deception with an ultimate goal," Ducky explained.

"Whatever that means."

"The Grenouille mission."

"Right."

"So, what is it this year?"

"Something Ziva said last year."

"And what was that?"

"She asked if I regretted not having a family around the holidays."

"And, do you?"

Tony snorted softly. "Guess I always thought I could have it someday, if I found the right person. But, I haven't yet, so… I don't know. Maybe I do. Not that our traditions here aren't good, but…"

"It'd be nice to have the whole package?" Ducky supplied.

"I guess," Tony said. "Do you ever regret not having kids?"

Ducky shrugged. "I suppose some days that it might be nice, but I'm also happy with my life as well."

"Hear, hear," Tony toasted, holding up his glass.

Ducky did the same before both men took a drink. "You're better off staying here this evening, Anthony," Ducky suggested. "You've had a lot to drink."

Tony shook his head. "Probie said he'd come back and bring me home. I wouldn't want you stuck with me all night."

Ducky chuckled. "On the contrary, it would be a pleasure. But, if you've already made arrangements with Timothy…"

"I appreciate the offer, Ducky."

As if on cue, the doorbell rang, and Ducky stood up to answer it. Tony continued sitting in the living room, finishing off his scotch.

"Hey, Probie," Tony said, standing as the other two made their way into the room. He faltered slightly, and McGee caught him. "I'm fine."

"You sure?" McGee asked.

Tony nodded, and McGee let go, allowing the older man to stand on his own. "Just a minor equilibrium problem."

"Make sure he gets home safe, Timothy," Ducky said.

"Will do," McGee replied.

"Night, Ducky," Tony said. "Thanks for the drink."

"You're welcome, Anthony. Merry Christmas."

"You too."

After McGee shared his own well-wishes, the two left Ducky's house. Once in the driveway, Tony tossed McGee his keys. "You put a scratch in her, I break you," he cautioned.

"Okay," McGee said as they both climbed in the car and left for the night.


	2. Chapter One

A/N: See first chapter for the disclaimer. I'm glad you guys are enjoying this so far, and I apologize that I'm slow with updating. These next few chapters take place post-Flesh and Blood, and all within the same day. I hope you guys enjoy, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter One

_**September 24, 1991**_

"_I can't get her to stop crying."_

_Keri was frantic, at the end of her rope, and he immediately dropped his books down onto the coffee table. "Let me see her," he said, holding his arms out for their daughter._

"_I swear, she's Satan's spawn," she said, handing the child off to him._

"_Or just mine," he joked lightly. As he cradled her close, she calmed down and stopped crying, causing Keri to glare at him._

"_I've tried everything I could think of," she said. "Feeding her, changing her, singing to her, and all she did was cry. The second you take her, instant silence."_

_He grinned playfully. "What can I say? I have a way with the ladies."_

_She rolled her eyes and pushed him gently on the shoulder._

"_You just really like Daddy better, don't you?" he asked their daughter with a wink and a smirk._

_Keri shook her head. "Yeah, she likes you better than the one who went through all the hard parts."_

_He frowned. "She probably just missed her daddy today. I'm sure the second you leave for work, I won't be able to get her to go to sleep."_

_She smirked. "I hope so. Retribution's a bitch."_

_He chuckled, shifting the child as he picked up one of his books._

"_Want me to take her?" Keri asked._

"_No, I've got her," he replied. "Why don't you get some rest before you go in?"_

"_You sure?"_

"_Yeah, we're fine."_

"_Okay." She kissed him gently on the lips before kissing the hair of their little girl. "Nighty night. Mama loves you."_

"_Mama!" she replied, hugging onto Keri._

"_See, she does like you better," he joked, causing Keri to smile._

"_Maybe," she said. She kissed the little girl again before walking out of the room to go to bed._

_He settled back on the couch with his book and his daughter before handing her a set of nesting dolls to play with as he read aloud to both of them._

"_Dada," the little girl cooed, breaking his concentration._

_Yet, never had one word sounded so sweet._

_**

* * *

**_

January 24, 2010

He briefly entertained the idea of not answering his phone, but knew there'd be hell to pay if he broke rule number three. "DiNozzo," he answered.

"We've got a body in an apartment in Norfolk," McGee informed him.

He groaned. "Can't they ever find other teams to come in on Sundays?"

"Not when we're second on the call sheet, and the first team was already deployed."

"Yeah, whatever. Just give me the address so I can meet you there."

* * *

"You're late," Gibbs commented as Tony made his way under the tape that adorned the apartment door.

"Traffic," Tony explained succinctly, not daring to add to it, _I really just didn't feel like it today_. "What's up?"

"Dead Midshipman's Patrick Johnson." Gibbs gestured at the distraught young woman sitting on the couch in the sitting area down the hall. "Go talk to his girlfriend. Get eliminations, and then get the security tapes."

"On it."

Interviewing victim's family and friends wasn't Tony's favorite assignment, which was why it was his punishment for being late. He walked over to the young girl, giving her his most sympathetic smile without actually studying her.

"I'm Agent DiNozzo, NCIS," he introduced himself. "And you are…?"

"Hannah Branford," she replied softly, almost unsure of whether or not she should be doing something else as she remained seated.

He glanced at her, feeling a moment of reminiscence of someone he used to know when he was younger. Of course, she'd be a lot older now, just like he was… Shaking that thought out of his head, he asked, "You were Midshipman Johnson's girlfriend?"

"Yeah."

"How long had you two been seeing each other?"

"Since high school. Pat, he, uh, he got accepted t-to the program here, and…" She sniffled, trying to keep down her tears and failing. "He wanted so bad to be an Aviator like his father."

He frowned softly. "I'm sorry for your loss."

She nodded, tears streaming down her face.

"Were you the one who found him?"

She nodded again, swallowing back some of her tears. "W-we were supposed to go out today, since h-he had a break this afternoon. W-when I went to his apartment, he was…" She cried harder, and he took a deep breath.

"Do you live with him?"

"N-no. I live on campus… I'm an RA at Waverly… we both go there. My building stayed open for Winter Break, so I've been here. We… we were just going to hang out…"

He nodded. "Can you think of anyone who would want to hurt him?"

She shook her head. "N-no… he was, he was very well liked. Popular guy, you know?"

"Yeah, I do. Hannah, we're gonna need to get a set of your prints and your DNA, okay?"

"Why?"

"To exclude you. You've been in the room on more than one occasion, it'll help us figure out who did this to Patrick."

"Okay," she breathed, wiping away her tears and trying to calm herself down.

Tony nodded, reaching into his kit to get a swab and his print kit.

"You've worked a lot of cases… like this, right?" she asked tentatively.

"Unfortunately," he replied mournfully.

"So… have you been here before, to this building or the school or something? Like, this school year?"

He furrowed his brow. "I don't think we have this school year. Why?"

"Okay, you're totally going to think this is strange, but… I feel like I know you from somewhere, and I thought that maybe I'd seen you here this year or something."

He bit his lip, thinking. "No, not this year. I'm sorry, I don't really recognize you, and I'm usually good at remembering people's faces."

She shook her head quickly. "No, no, it's okay. Like I said, it's totally weird. I'm sorry."

He gave her a gentle, good-natured smile. "It's quite alright."

"What did you say your name was again?" she asked as he took her prints.

"Agent Tony DiNozzo," he replied.

She frowned in contemplation. "The name doesn't sound familiar. I don't know, maybe I'm just making it up. Forcing a connection in a distraught state, you know? Has that ever happened to you?"

"Can't say that it has, no."

She shrugged, sighing. "Maybe my mind's playing tricks on me to make me forget about…" She looked down at her lap as a whole new wave of tears swept through her, and he frowned.

"Excuse me for one second, Hannah. Okay?"

She nodded, but didn't reply.

* * *

Tony walked back over to Gibbs. "Girlfriend's pretty shook up," he reported. "Says she doesn't know who'd do this. I talked to the manager, he's getting the tapes for us."

"You know her?" Gibbs asked, causing Tony to curse the older man's ability to lip-read.

"Don't think so. Name doesn't ring a bell."

"Girlfriend's kid?"

Tony glanced over to Hannah before looking back at Gibbs. "I don't usually date girls with kids."

Gibbs looked at Hannah.

"I'm gonna finish up with her."

Gibbs nodded, watching as Tony walked over to the girl.

* * *

"Hannah?"

She looked up at Tony, her green eyes shining with tears waiting to fall.

"I'm gonna need to take a DNA sample from you, okay?"

She nodded, opening her mouth for him to swab. "Are you sure we've never met before?" she asked after he finished.

"I'm sorry, I don't think so," he said thoughtfully as he tucked away the swab. "Is there anything else about Patrick that we should know?"

"I can't think of anything."

"Well, if you do, here's my card." He handed her the small card. "Call me if you think of something, okay?" At her nod, he started to stand up with his backpack.

"Who's going to notify his family?" she asked.

He stopped, turning around. "The Navy'll take care of it."

She nodded again, looking down, and he sat back down next to her as she started to talk again. "Pat and I were always close… ever since we first met in preschool. He was one of the first kids I'd ever met, and it was right after we'd moved… not that I really remember the moving part, but I remember meeting Pat… he was so sweet. It's one of the things I've always loved about him. We… we always said we'd get married after college…"

Against his normal thoughts, he took her hand in his soothingly as the tears cascaded down her cheeks.

* * *

He brought the box of evidence into Abby's lab, dropping it loudly onto the table. "Jesus, DiNozzo, trying to wake the dead?" she joked in her best Gibbs voice.

"Sorry," he muttered absently.

"You okay?"

"Long morning."

She picked up a piece of evidence, signing the log. "Speak."

He shook his head quickly. "Nothing. I just got stuck in traffic on the way to the crime scene, and then got stuck interviewing the victim's girlfriend, who insisted that she knew me from somewhere, and I've been wracking my brain to figure out where."

She pursed her lips as she picked up another piece of evidence. "How old is she?" she asked.

"Nineteen, according to her ID," he said.

"You feel like you know her too?"

He shrugged rather than blurt out what he first thought of. "Somewhat, but I don't know if that's because she believes it, or if it's something I came up with on my own. I'm gonna go upstairs and run her name, see if maybe it came up in one of my cases."

"Okay. Good luck."

He smiled slightly.


	3. Chapter Two

A/N: See the first chapter for the disclaimer. The added one is that Hannah Branford is mine, and the circumstances put forth later in this chapter have not, to the best of my knowledge, actually happened. This chapter reveals a little more, and takes place on the same day as the last one. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and please review. :D

* * *

Chapter Two

_**December 25, 1990**_

_Keri cradled the infant in her arms, trying to soothe her back to sleep. He padded down the hall, finding his two favorite ladies in the living room._

"_What are you doing up?" Keri whispered, not wanting to startle the baby._

"_Couldn't fall back asleep," he admitted, smiling._

"_Remind me again. What is so exciting at three in the morning?"_

"_It's three in the morning on Christmas. Our daughter's first Christmas."_

_Keri paused as that statement sank into her head. "Yeah, it is," she smiled. "I never would've pegged you for the sentimental one."_

_He shrugged, smirking. "There's a lot about me you don't know."_

_She didn't respond, rocking the newborn slowly._

"_I swear, she gets more perfect every day," he said, causing Keri to scoff quietly._

"_What, are you writing greeting cards?" she teased under her breath._

_He frowned. "You don't think so?"_

"_I do when she's sleeping."_

_He chuckled. "Yeah, the crying's a little off-putting," he mocked._

_She giggled. "No, I agree," she said after a minute. "She's perfect."_

"_Just like her mother." He kissed Keri softly, taking care not to disturb the infant._

"_You give me way too much credit."_

"_I could never give you enough. I love you."_

"_I love you too." She leaned back in the chair, and he settled in beside her. "Why don't you go back to bed? She's sleeping, and I'm fine."_

"_Because I'd rather be here," he replied._

"_Okay, you get overly sappy at three in the morning," she ribbed._

_He shrugged, making himself comfortable. "Merry Christmas, honey."_

"_Merry Christmas."_

* * *

_**Still January 24, 2010**_

"So, who's the girl?" he asked.

"Huh?" Tony replied, looking away from the computer screen briefly to find Ziva and McGee watching him from McGee's desk.

"The girl," Ziva said. "At the crime scene."

"Hannah Branford. She's the victim's girlfriend."

Ziva and McGee share a look. "Who is she to you?" McGee asked.

"Never saw her before," Tony replied, despite the nagging feeling in his gut.

"Really? Because she seemed to know you."

"What makes you say that?"

"She asked me where you were from. Said she felt she knew you from somewhere."

Tony shrugged, turning back to his computer. "Maybe I'm just that kind of a person," he dismissed.

Ziva and McGee shared a look before she crept up behind Tony. "Is that why you are searching her name in the databases?" she asked.

"I'm searching her name in databases because she could be a suspect. Or, she could end up being another victim. So, I'm running her name because that's what a good investigator does."

"Tony, we ran her name," McGee said. "We got nothing. No names, no connections other than the obvious girlfriend status. Driver's license is from Rhode Island, adoption in Massachusetts, birth certificate was destroyed in a fire in a courthouse in Massachusetts. Other than that, no wants, no warrants, not even a traffic ticket. She went to school with Patrick Johnson…"

"Alright, enough, McGee," Tony interrupted. "I get the point. She's a good kid from the Northeast."

"You spent time there, yes?" Ziva said.

"High school in Rhode Island, but she's too young to be from that time. Her birth certificate was destroyed?"

"According to the clerk, yes," McGee said. "I called and asked when I couldn't find one for her. He said that any birth certificates before 1996 were destroyed. The adoption agency had the adoption record, but no copy of the birth certificate."

"Birth parents?" Tony asked.

"Closed adoption. We're working on getting into the records, but it's taking some time. The adoption took place in June of 1994, through a small, private agency in Massachusetts. Agency closed by the state a few years ago."

"Why was it closed?"

"Don't know yet. The case was sealed."

"Something's off about this."

"Well, I'm trying to get it unsealed, but I'm not getting very far."

"I'll make a call," Tony said, grabbing the receiver.

* * *

Gibbs walked into the room, finding his three agents standing around the monitor. "Boss, Midshipmen Johnson's background is clean," McGee said, turning around. "Just a good kid from Middletown, Rhode Island. We're still working with his parents, but so far, no one seems to have a real reason to want him dead. We're working on it, though."

"We also started looking into the girlfriend," Ziva said.

"Find out how she knows you?" Gibbs asked, looking at Tony.

"No," Tony said softly.

"She was born in Massachusetts, put up for adoption in 1994, and after a year, her parents moved her to Rhode Island," McGee said. "The agency she was adopted from, though, was closed by the state a few years ago. We're working on getting the file unsealed."

"We've got it." Tony pulled it up onto the plasma, scrolling through it. "Huh. Says here they found out that a child who was put up for adoption was actually an infant who was kidnapped from New York, and that was why the agency closed…" His voice trailed off as his mind traveled elsewhere.

"Only one?" Gibbs asked.

"The employee who was involved had been there since January 1993," McGee read. "Of all the cases they looked into, they could confirm 25 cases, but only between 1996 and 2002, due to the county courthouse burning down in 1996. They couldn't prove that any others had occurred between 1993 and 1996 as most of the hospital records were already gone."

"Hannah Branford's adoption was June 30, 1994," Ziva said.

"What's her birthday?" Tony asked absently.

"Uh… license says December 1, 1990," McGee said.

Tony walked out of the bullpen without a word.

* * *

"Hey, Abs, can you do me a favor?" Tony asked as he walked into her lab.

"I can try, but you guys brought me a lot to work with," she said.

"The victim's girlfriend, Hannah Branford. Run her fingerprints through AFIS."

She looked at him. "Are you running with a hunch?"

"Yeah. Please run them."

"They're already scanned in for comparison to your unknowns, so…" She typed into her computer. "AFIS is running them."

"Call me if you get a hit."

"You wanna share your hunch?"

"Not particularly," he said quietly as he walked out of the lab, coming face-to-face with Gibbs.

Gibbs stared at him, and Tony simply shook his head. "I'll let you know later," the younger man said, trying to walk past Gibbs.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs said softly.

Tony stopped, but kept his back to Gibbs.

"What are you hiding?"

"I'll tell you later," Tony whispered. "I… I can't right now."

Gibbs said nothing, simply watching as his senior agent walked down the hall.

* * *

Tony made his way into Abby's lab about half an hour later, finding her expression a mix between happy, sad, pissed, and confused. "I got a hit on her prints," she said softly, keeping her voice calculated.

Tony sighed quietly as Abby handed him the sheet of paper.

"Is this the hunch you had?" she asked, letting some of her emotions creep into her voice.

"Call it more of a wish," he breathed, trying to keep himself together.

Her expression softened as she noticed his face betraying the turmoil underneath. She reached out, hugging Tony tightly.

* * *

Tony made his way back into the bullpen, holding up the paper and nodding in the direction of the elevator. Gibbs nodded, standing and following Tony into the elevator. Once inside and between floors, Tony hit the switch.

"After we got the file unsealed, I had Abby help me run with a hunch," Tony said. "Hannah's birth certificate was supposedly destroyed, earliest record is a closed adoption from a shady agency. She… she kept saying that she knew me, so… so I had Abby run her fingerprints through AFIS."

Gibbs took the sheet that Tony handed him before arching his eyebrows.

"She's my daughter, Boss."


	4. Chapter Three

A/N: See the first chapter for the disclaimer. The Captain is mine too. And this chapter will explain a few things, I hope. I thank you guys for all your support of this story so far. It especially means a lot right now. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter as well, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Three

_**June 27, 1994**_

_Captain De Marco walked over to him, the rookie fresh out of the Academy, and stopped in front of him with a very serious look on his face._

"_Sir?" he asked._

"_Officer DiNozzo, could you come with me to my office?" De Marco asked quietly._

"_Yes, sir." He stood up, following his captain into his office and closing the door behind him._

"_Have a seat."_

_He sat down, and De Marco sat down across from him._

"_Units from another precinct were dispatched to a disturbance in your apartment this morning," De Marco explained. "Your wife and daughter are missing."_

_He sighed, scrubbing his hands over his face._

"_I'm sorry, Officer DiNozzo."_

_Tony nodded, swallowing back any emotions._

"_Do either you or your wife have any enemies?"_

"_No… no, not that I know of," Tony answered, scratching his chin. "I mean, we just moved here… we didn't have any beforehand. She was very well liked. Popular girl, you know?"_

"_What about you?" De Marco asked. "Or, your families?"_

_Tony shook his head. "None that I can think of."_

_De Marco nodded slowly. "I can have someone bring you home, if you'd like."_

"_I'm okay. Thanks."_

"_Sure."_

_Tony stood up, turning to walk out the door._

"_DiNozzo?"_

_Tony turned around._

"_If you need anything, let me know."_

"_Thank you, sir," Tony said, walking out of the office._

* * *

_**Still January 24, 2010**_

Tony sat down on the floor of the elevator as Gibbs leaned against the wall, staring at the paper in his hand.

"Keri's remains were found in someone's backyard when they were renovating the property in 1996," the younger man said, scrubbing his fingers over his eye. "Heather… there was never anything found of her. I never gave up hope that she was alive, but… I mean, after fifteen and a half years…"

"Yeah," Gibbs said.

"Didn't wanna say anything until I was sure, you know?"

Gibbs nodded.

Tony was quiet for a moment before snorting softly. "Guess we know why she thought I was familiar," he said softly.

"Hmm," Gibbs said.

"As soon as she said it, I felt it too, but… I wasn't sure if that's because I was trying to figure out if I really had seen her before, or what it was. Of course, I wouldn't have been able to recognize her at all, considering the last time I saw her, she was three and a half."

"You wanna tell her?"

Tony sighed softly. "How do you explain to someone that the reason they know you is because they've been lied to their entire life?"

* * *

He pulled out the chair for her, and she sat down. "Did you find something?" she asked.

"Uh, in a manner of speaking," he replied, sitting down across from her. "Hannah, are you aware you were adopted?"

"Yeah. My parents told me when I was a kid." She narrowed her eyes slightly. "How did you know?"

"It's standard on every case for us to look into anyone who knows the victim."

She nodded.

"We ran your name for records, and a few things didn't match up," he explained.

"W-what do you mean?" she asked nervously.

"The agency you were adopted from was closed down eight years ago, after the authorities found out the agency had allowed a kidnapped child from New York to be adopted. Since the courthouse burned down in 1996, they weren't able to accurately determine how many of that particular agent's cases were kidnapped children."

"And, they were my agent?"

"Your adoption records are still sealed, so we don't know who worked your case. But, on that information, we ran your fingerprints through our database. We got a match, from a child's bedroom in a missing persons case from Peoria, Illinois. And since fingerprints are set from birth…"

She leaned back in the chair, her eyes betraying her surprise and anger. "So, you're telling me I was kidnapped as a kid."

"I'm afraid so," he said softly.

"How old was I when…" she asked.

"Three and a half."

"Is my name even Hannah?"

"You were born Heather."

She shook her head, snorting softly. "All this time I thought I was Hannah Branford, from Rhode Island or wherever, and it turns out I'm… Heather, from Illinois."

"Actually, Ohio. We found your birth certificate." He slid over a sheet of paper to her.

"So, I'm Heather from Ohio." She rolled her eyes. "Is this supposed to somehow make me feel better about things, or are you just stalling because you have more questions?"

He exhaled slowly. "I'm trying to help you answer questions," he said, keeping his voice calm.

She gave him a confused look before finally looking down at the sheet of paper. "So, I was born Heather DiNozzo?"

He nodded.

She narrowed her eyes again as reality started to sink in. "DiNozzo. Like, you DiNozzo? Like, you're my father, DiNozzo?"

He nodded again before wetting his lip.

"And, what, all this time you've been sitting on your ass?" she spouted angrily as long-forgotten memories slowly washed over her. "More concerned about your damn career than your daughter?"

"That's not true," he said softly.

"The hell it isn't! I was in friggen plain sight!"

* * *

The door to the conference room opened, and McGee poked his head in. "Everything alright?" he asked.

Tony glanced at a fuming Hannah before turning back to face McGee. "It's fine," he said softly.

"The hell it is," Hannah growled, causing McGee to remain in the doorway. "Answer my damn questions."

"I never gave up hope," Tony told her. "I never stopped looking."

She glared at him. "Why didn't you ever find me? Why weren't you there?"

"I had to go to work. You were out of daycare sick, and your mom begged me to go to work instead of staying home with you. She said that she was there, and there was no sense in both of us staying in with you."

Hannah's glare didn't ease with his explanation, and if McGee were to testify in court, he would say that Tony was wincing.

"If I could, I'd go back and stay home that day," he told her.

"But you can't," she said evenly, despite the anger burning in her.

"No, I can't. I have to live with the fact that I was at work the day I lost my wife and my daughter."

McGee tilted his head in confusion, but said nothing.

* * *

Hannah sighed, her posture and glare softening as his words sank in. "I'm right in front of you," she said quietly, almost child-like, before snorting softly. "Hell, I still kinda remember you."

Tony smiled slightly. "You'll have to forgive me for not immediately recognizing you," he replied.

She shrugged playfully, smirking in a manner so much like her father. "I don't have to do anything."

Tony smirked. "_Could_ you forgive me for not recognizing you?"

"That part, yes. I mean, I was what, three the last time you saw me?"

"And a half. You were very proud of those six, almost seven, months."

She smiled slightly before biting her cheek. "I always said that I'd someday like to meet my birth parents, but my parents didn't know anything about them. They said it was a closed adoption, that I probably wouldn't be able to find out. Do… do you think they knew…?"

Tony shook his head. "No. They were duped like other parents from that agency."

"They… they had to be, right? Because if they knew, they wouldn't have kept me… right?"

He shrugged. "I don't know them, Hannah. I can't tell you."

"Hannah or Heather?"

"That's up to you."

"I… I need to… do I, uh, do I need to stay or something?"

Tony shook his head again. "We know how to find you if we need you."

"Thanks," she said, standing. She quickly walked out of the room, and Tony nodded at McGee to escort her out.

* * *

Tony had lost track of how long he'd been sitting in the conference room by the time Gibbs walked in, stopping only to sit across from his agent.

"She took it better than I thought," Tony started. "But worse than I imagined."

Gibbs furrowed his brow, but didn't say anything.

"I mean, it's not easy learning your life's been a sham. I get that. And I can understand why she'd be angry, and why she'd feel like blaming me. Hell, I still blame me. But… I don't know, I guess I always thought if I ever saw her again that… that it'd be good and happy, and this… wasn't."

"You thought she'd be happy, or you would?" Gibbs asked.

"Either… or both. But it's more like neither right now."

"Does your father know?"

"About Hannah? No. About Heather and Keri? Yeah, he knew. It was part of the reason we stopped talking in the first place. Keri and I didn't get married until Heather was already walking, and that didn't sit well with him."

Gibbs nodded.

"You think he knew about Hannah?"

Gibbs wished he had an answer.


	5. Chapter Four

A/N: See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I apologize for how long it's been in between updates. I've been busy, and my muses have also decided to run off, and I've had an incredibly hard time rounding them up again. I'm working on it. ;) Until then, here's the next chapter. As always, I hope you enjoy, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Four

_**December 1, 1993**_

_Tiny footsteps made their way into the big bedroom at the crack of dawn, and Tony discretely quirked one eye open. Keri was laying still as well, waiting to see their little princess. A moment later, two tiny hands gripped onto the bedspread, pulling a tiny body up with them. Heather crawled her way further up the bed, standing in between her parents._

_She started jumping up and down, trying to wake her parents, who were pretending to be asleep. When she tripped over Tony's leg and landed on his chest, the charade was over. He wrapped his arms tightly around the little girl, who squealed in delight._

"_Wakey wakey, Daddy!" she giggled, hugging around his neck._

"_Morning, Princess," he replied, sitting up as he kissed her on the top of the head._

"_It's mah biwfday!"_

"_I know. You're almost as old as me."_

_She giggled again, shaking her head. "Nuh uh."_

"_Uh huh."_

"_Nuh uh."_

"_Uh huh."_

"_Nuh uh, Daddy. You weally owld."_

_He laughed. "I'm not that old, Princess." Pulling her closer to his side, he uncovered his legs and climbed out of bed. "So, what would the princess like for breakfast on this special day?"_

"_Cookies!" she chirped, digging her little fingers into his undershirt._

"_Cookies aren't a good breakfast for little girls," he replied, walking into the kitchen. "What about pancakes?"_

_She frowned. "I want cookies."_

"_And if Mommy weren't here, I might give you cookies, but you'll have to wait until lunch for those."_

_Her eyes threatened to well up with tears, and he had to force himself not to look, lest he cave._

"_How about I put chocolate chips in the pancakes, and we don't tell Mommy?"_

"_Okie!" she agreed. "It ouwr secwet!"_

_Tony smiled, kissing Heather's hair gently as he glanced over to the doorway where Keri had been standing. He winked, and Keri shook her head._

Pushover,_ she mouthed._

_Tony just grinned._

* * *

_**January 25, 2010**_

_1:45 a.m._

He lay on his back, watching the shadows dance across the ceiling. Memories, moments, laughs, fights, tears, and everything in between ran through his mind faster than Gibbs drove. The three and a half years of Heather being in his life played out more like a jumbled version of _Memento_ than anything else.

Backwards. Forwards. Everything in between.

Sighing, he sat up, scrubbing his hand over his face. Sleep wouldn't come to him, which wasn't what he had expected. He thought that when he knew she was alive and healthy, that sleep would come to him easily. Instead, he was focused on what he'd been there for, and all the moments he'd missed.

And there was the question about his father.

There were a lot of things that Senior knew about. A well-to-do con man like himself, who had swindled people for so long… it was hard to believe that Senior could be conned. Even Tony wasn't sure that Senior ever really believed the note. And if he did, he was in for a wakeup call when Al told him he had no idea what Senior was talking about.

The thought made Tony smile.

Resolving himself that he wouldn't be able to sleep without the answer, he picked up his phone and dialed a number he normally loathed calling.

"DiNozzo," a very sleepy Senior answered.

"Hey, Dad," Tony replied.

Pause. "Junior? What are you thinking calling so late?"

"I'm sorry, Dad, but I need to ask you about something."

"This couldn't wait until morning?"

"No."

Tony heard his father sigh and move around in the background. "What's so important, Junior, that it couldn't wait until later?"

"Heather."

Senior sighed again. "I haven't heard you bring her name up in fifteen years."

"How much do you know about her?"

"Just what you've told me, Son. What are you getting at?"

"Do you think she's still alive?"

Another pause, and Tony wished he could see his father's face, to know what he was thinking. "You're the investigator," Senior said after a moment. "You tell me."

"I don't know," Tony lied softly, almost reverently.

"I've always hoped she was. I'd like to know my granddaughter, to hold her again."

Tony closed his eyes.

"When you told me she was missing, I hoped they'd find her alive," Senior continued. "I always thought that was the reason you'd stopped calling. Wasn't surprised to find out from someone else about Keri."

"I didn't call you to argue about that," Tony said tiredly.

"What did you call for, Junior?"

"I don't know. I guess I just… was thinking about Heather, and… I don't know. I never knew what you were thinking about what happened. And, well, you were here two weeks ago… although, I'm not sure why you came, but it was good to see you."

"Sure was, Junior."

Tony shook his head. "Anyway… I, uh, I'm sorry I woke you up. I'll let you go back to sleep."

"Junior, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Tony said, forcing conviction and hoping Senior didn't see through it.

"Alright," Senior replied.

"I'll let you go."

"Okay."

"Night, Dad."

"Night, Junior."

Tony hung up, lying back in bed with the feeling that none of his questions had really gotten answered.

* * *

Gibbs walked into the bullpen, furrowing his brow at finding a half-asleep, half-troubled senior field agent staring at his computer. He stopped in front of Tony's desk, looking at him.

"I called him last night," Tony said, not looking away from the computer.

Gibbs said nothing.

"I don't know if he knows anything. But… maybe he does. Maybe that's the real reason he came down here two weeks ago. Maybe he wanted to check out Hannah, and… and I got in the way. I was… I was just another excuse. Although… I don't know. It's hard to tell when I'm not looking at him. And… he had a point, that I kinda stopped calling after she disappeared…"

"I get that," Gibbs said softly.

"He said he's always hoped she was alive," Tony said, finally looking at Gibbs. "So maybe he did know. But… I don't know how he'd pay to hire someone. Or hell, what he'd even really be looking for her for. I mean, it's not like he'd do it to give me peace of mind. So… maybe he was looking for her for money, which she doesn't have as a student, but… I don't know."

Gibbs said nothing, simply patting Tony's shoulder.

Tony scrubbed his hands over his face. "I need answers."

Gibbs shrugged. "Go find them," he offered.

"Yeah, because my dad's just gonna come right out with them when I ask," Tony retorted.

"He surprised you before."

"Yeah, I guess." Tony yawned briefly before getting up from his desk. "I need coffee," he announced.

Gibbs wasn't going to stand in his way.

* * *

"So, Tony has a daughter?" Palmer asked, looking at the assembled group.

"I ran the prints myself," Abby replied. "I even compared her DNA to his sample. She's his daughter."

"I can't imagine what that'd be like, finding your father right after your boyfriend's killed."

"I can't believe he didn't tell us."

"He believed his daughter was dead," Ziva said simply. "She and his wife both disappeared in 1994. Keri, the mother, was found in someone's backyard two years later. Though nothing was ever found of Heather, it was not a stretch to guess that she was dead too."

"How long have you known about this?" McGee asked her.

Ziva chose that moment to say nothing.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Abby asked, half-glaring at Ziva.

"I had figured that you all knew," Ziva replied. "Or, that Tony did not want to talk about it. So, I did not mention it."

"So, is it safe to assume that you knew about Shannon and Kelly before we did?" McGee asked.

Ziva gave the slightest nod.

"You knew about Tony's past, and you said nothing," Abby accused.

"I have never told any of you about each other's pasts," Ziva countered. "Why would I start with Tony's?"

"So, do you think he's going to become all serious and fatherly?" Palmer asked, diffusing the argument for the moment.

"I doubt it. His daughter is already grown with two normal parents. I'm not sure she will want a third."

"He'll be there for her if she wants him to," Abby said.

"Yeah," McGee agreed.

"What's gonna happen if she doesn't want him in her life?" Palmer asked.

No one in the room dared to answer.

* * *

His phone rang just as he was getting settled down behind his desk once again, and he answered it with a quick, "DiNozzo."

"A-agent DiNozzo?" Hannah replied, her voice terrified and hesitant.

"Hannah? Hannah, what's wrong?"

"Please, help me!"

"Hannah?"

Before she could answer, he heard a struggle, followed by a silenced gunshot. And then the line went dead.


	6. Chapter Five

A/N: See first chapter for the disclaimer. As always, I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Five

_**December 1, 1990**_

_Anthony DiNozzo Senior walked into the hospital room, most recent wife on his arm. He glanced over at the bed, where his son's girlfriend was sitting, holding their daughter._

_The whole reason he came here in the first place._

_Forcing himself to hold onto his disproval for the moment, he offered her a small smile as she looked up at her. "I'm not sure if Junior told you I was coming," he said._

"_He mentioned you might," she replied. "I'm Keri."_

"_Tony. This is my wife, Jillian."_

_Jillian gave a tiny smile._

"_Hi," Keri said softly. "How are you?"_

"_We're fine," Senior said simply. "Keri, may I be frank with you?"_

"_Uh, sure," she replied hesitantly._

"_I don't know how you tricked my son into this…"_

"_I didn't trick your son into anything," she interrupted._

"_Don't speak until I am finished," Senior cautioned._

_She looked at him, but said nothing._

"_As I was saying, I don't know how you tricked my son into this, but he isn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. How much will it take for you to take this child and disappear?"_

"_Excuse me?" Keri asked incredulously._

"_I'm offering you an out," Senior said. "Take this child as far away from my son as possible. You don't want to be involved with him. Trust me."_

"_Mr. DiNozzo, with all due respect, I'm in love with your son. And I'm not forcing anything here. I told him he could leave, and he _wanted_ to stay. I'm not going to take that away from him."_

"_How could you even ask her to do that?" Tony said, making his way out of the bathroom._

_Senior simply looked over at his son._

"_What, do you think I'm just some big fuck-up?" Tony continued. "That I didn't know what I was doing? Keri and I are going to get married, Dad, when our lives are a little more stable."_

"_Maybe you should've thought about that before getting her pregnant," Senior countered._

"_We live together, we have enough funds that we can raise our daughter. Especially when Keri starts her new job in the spring. We're going to be fine. And while I'm sure you may have been here to see your granddaughter, I'm positive you weren't here to be sure that I was going to be okay. So if the only reason you're here is to make my fiancée leave me, then I suggest you and Jillian go back home."_

"_You can't talk to me like that."_

_Tony faltered slightly, but didn't bend. Not another word was spoken as Senior and Jillian left the hospital room._

* * *

_**Still January 25, 2010**_

Tony jumped out of the car before Gibbs had even pulled to a stop, rushing toward the ambulance and campus police officers. After a quick flash of his badge, they stepped back, letting him pass.

There was a group of people near the front office and front door that Tony had to negotiate, but even once he was past them, he wasn't sure where he was going. He turned to a woman, who clearly was not a student and, rather, the in-hall director, and said, "NCIS. Hannah Branford."

"They should be bringing her down soon," the woman told him quietly.

Tony cut her a slight glare, as if to say, 'that's not what I asked.'

"Room 322," she said.

He nodded, running up the stairs before Gibbs managed to get inside the building. As Tony rounded the stairs on the second floor, he heard the group nearing the elevator on the third floor. He took the stairs two at a time, barely catching up with the EMTs. While the clear leader of the group was in her 30s, the others with her were in their 20s, and Tony wondered absently if they were even qualified for this job.

Then again, nothing could've prepared them for this.

Tony squeezed his way into the elevator by flashing his badge and practically jumping on the stretcher to assist them. "Hannah," he said softly.

She opened her eyes briefly, looking at him through hazy slits. "Tony?" she whispered.

He barely caught the question through the oxygen mask, but he nodded in response. "I'm here. You're gonna be okay."

She closed her eyes again in response, and one of the EMTs, the only one not in uniform, looked at him sharply.

"I'm going with you," Tony said.

The un-uniformed EMT looked like he was going to protest and say that he needed to be there, but the leader said, "Sure thing, Sir. We'll need you to ride up front, though."

"Understood."

The group squeezed through the crowd, and when Tony nodded at Hannah, Gibbs returned the nod.

* * *

It was some time later when Gibbs finally joined Tony at the emergency room, the latter caked in dried blood from the assistance he had offered earlier. The team leader handed his senior agent a cup of coffee, something the younger man accepted gratefully.

"Nothing yet?" Gibbs asked softly.

Tony shook his head. "Still in surgery. She's lost a lot of blood. One of the EMTs, a Nathaniel Morse, he works with Hannah, and he said that they were supposed to have a re-training seminar thing today. When Hannah didn't show up, they headed upstairs to her room. The, uh, the door was open when they got there. She was tied up after she was shot, Boss. Just so she couldn't call for help."

Gibbs closed his eyes at the pain in Tony's voice, but said nothing.

"McGee and Ziva processing?"

Gibbs nodded.

Tony nodded, sighing heavily as his phone rang. "DiNozzo," he answered it.

"_Junior?"_ his father said.

Tony flinched. The last thing he really wanted to deal with right now. "Dad…"

"_Son, where are you?"_

"Dad, now's not…"

"_Junior,"_ Senior cut in. _"Are you in the hospital?"_

Tony sighed. "At, Dad. Not in. Working. What is so urgent that it can't wait?"

"_So, you're okay?"_

Tony furrowed his brow, completely confused. "Yeah, Dad, I'm okay," he said, glancing over to Gibbs.

Gibbs tilted his head slightly.

"_Thank goodness,"_ Senior breathed.

"Dad, what's going on?" Tony asked.

"_After you called last night, I was concerned, so I came down to see you. Only your office told me you were in the hospital. And they looked rather worried."_

"You're here? Or, well, at NCIS?"

Gibbs arched his eyebrows slightly.

"_Yes,"_ Senior said.

"Why?" Tony blurted before he could stop himself.

"_I just told you. I was worried about you. You haven't brought up Heather in years. Why would you now? And the way you were talking, about how it couldn't wait… I needed to know you were okay."_

"Since when? If I recall, you were the one who tried to get Keri to take her away from me."

Gibbs glanced down at his own coffee cup wordlessly.

"_That was my mistake, Junior,"_ Senior offered.

"You're damn right it was," Tony replied.

"_I know I can't make up for it in a day, but…"_

"What, are you in some kind of twelve-step program or something?"

"_I need to know where you are."_

"I'm working. I'll see you when I get back. Until then, if you need something, call Abby." Tony hung up before his father could reply.

"You could've told him," Gibbs mentioned softly.

Tony scoffed. "Yeah," he said. "'Yeah, Dad, you know that case? Well, it's really that someone tried to kill Hannah, or, well, Heather.' That would've gone over well."

"You gonna tell him?"

"I don't know. Gonna be hard to hide it from him, though, considering the fact that he's already at NCIS."

Gibbs shrugged.

Tony sighed softly. "I still don't get why he's here."

"What'd he say?"

"Said he was worried about me."

Gibbs glanced over.

"Two weeks ago, he came down and never got around to his reason. Now, he's coming down for almost no reason at all. I don't like it, Boss."

Gibbs watched his senior agent.

"I don't trust it. He's up to something. I can smell it."

"What're you gonna do?" Gibbs asked.

Tony shook his head. "I have no idea."


	7. Chapter Six

A/N: See first chapter for the disclaimer. I'm sorry it's been over a month, but real life is pretty hectic right now, and trying to settle in is proving to be very difficult. I apologize. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Six

_**May 16, 1993**_

"_You nervous?"_

_Tony mockingly glared at his wife. "It's only a graduation," he replied casually. "I've been here, done this all before."_

"_It's your college graduation," she pointed out. "And our daughter's going to be there. Which means she's going to see just how successful her daddy is, and strive to be just like him."_

_He scoffed slightly. "Because she'd really pick out me, a guy with a B.A. in Phys. Ed., over you, the E.R. doctor, to idolize."_

"_You're going to make an amazing police officer. You know that."_

_He smiled. "Yes, and fortunately, I'll have my wife's immense wealth to support me."_

_She chuckled softly. "Yeah, pretty much."_

"_Hey, at least if anything happens, I know I'll have someone in the E.R. with a vested interest in my recovery," he commented._

"_Really?" Keri replied. "Heather's already a doctor?"_

_He glared again. "Cute."_

_She smiled wider, kissing him gently on the lips. "Nothing's going to happen to you while I'm around. I'll kill them first."_

_He nodded, pulling her close to him. "And I'll protect you two too."_

_She rested her head against his shoulder as Heather waddled into the room, all dressed up and ready for the ceremony. "Mama, Dada, look!" she said, spinning in circles._

"_Looks like our little princess plans on being a dancer," Tony joked softly._

"_Honey, slow down or you're gonna fall down," Keri warned gently._

"_Fall down, go boom," Heather said, plopping on the carpet._

_The proud parents shared a quick glance and an easy smirk at their daughter's behavior._

"_Come here, sweetie," Tony said, crouching down for her._

"_Dada!" she said, crawling over to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he stood back up with her._

"_You gonna cheer for Daddy when they call his name?"_

"_Uh huh!"_

_Tony smiled, kissing her on the top of the head. "That's my girl."_

* * *

_**Still January 25, 2010**_

Gibbs and Tony made their way into NCIS headquarters, the latter of which still caked with blood, drawing the attention of Ziva, McGee, and Senior.

"It's not mine," Tony offered softly, walking behind his desk.

"Whose is it?" Senior asked. "Because, they won't tell me."

Tony kept his head down as he sat in the chair. "Connected to a current case, Dad. Can't talk about it."

"Can't, or won't?"

"Does it really matter?"

"Yes, it does. Why won't you even look at me? What the hell is going on?"

Tony looked up. "Dad, we are trying to work here. So, please, let us do that."

"You wake me up in the middle of the night, asking me about Heather. You're being cryptic about a case. You come in covered in blood. And last time you had that expression on your face, you were telling me your wife and daughter were missing."

"Well, maybe you should try telling me what you know," Tony countered, standing.

"What are you talking about, Junior?" Senior replied as Ziva and McGee shared a look.

"When I asked you about Heather last night, I got the distinct impression that you might know more than you were saying."

"Junior, all I ever knew about her was what you told me."

Tony scoffed. "You're lying. I can tell. So, again, what do you know?"

"What makes you so convinced I know something?" Senior asked.

"You wouldn't just jump a train on a whim because I called you at two in the morning," Tony replied. "You may care, sure, but not enough to rush down here to see if I'm jumping off a ledge or something. So what was it that I said that got you down here? And what do you know?"

Gibbs stepped forward, cornering Senior against Tony's desk with Ziva and McGee.

"Back off," Senior growled.

Tony shook his head. "You're my father. You owe it to me to tell me what the hell's going on. What do you know?"

Senior sighed, closing his eyes as he realized he had no other way out. "Heather's alive."

Tony arched his eyebrows. "How do you know?"

Senior looked at his son. "She's been living as Hannah Branford since she was about four years old or so. This was, uh, recently brought to my attention."

"How recently?"

"New Year's Eve."

"So, when you came down here, you weren't just talking about finances."

Senior shook his head.

"What happened?"

"In 1994, I… made a deal with a few gentlemen," Senior explained nonchalantly. "I thought nothing of it when things started going wrong. It's the nature of the beast. But, when I saw you a little while later, and you told me Keri and Heather were missing, I… grew a little concerned. I wasn't aware of the truth of the situation until one of the gentlemen told me, on his death bed, what they had done and where Heather was now."

"Death bed?" McGee asked.

"Dad, did you kill him?" Tony implored.

"Do I look like a murderer, Junior?" Senior countered.

"Do you _really_ want me to answer that?"

The team glanced at Tony, wondering where his sudden bravado in the face of his father had come from.

"No, I did not kill him," Senior said. "I would have if I knew before, but the cancer got him this time. And he didn't give up the names of the guys who actually did it before he went, just the impression that he had taken care of them a long time ago."

"And so, when you found this out, naturally your first thought was of yourself?" Tony asked.

"These weren't exactly reputable gentlemen, Junior. I didn't want you getting your hopes up."

"If they weren't reputable, then why'd you go into business with them?"

Senior clenched his jaw, glaring at his son.

Tony shook his head. "You don't want to admit to me that you screwed them, so they took it out on me. Is that it?"

"No," Senior growled.

"Sure it is. Answer me this, though, Dad. Are they still after her, or is this something else entirely?"

"What? Why? Is someone after her?"

Tony scoffed. "You tell me." He held up his still blood-crusted hands for emphasis.

"So, that's what all the questions were about. You found out about Heather."

"Yeah, I did."

"Is that her blood?"

Tony bit the inside of his cheek slightly, and Senior wilted albeit slightly.

"Is she okay?" Senior asked.

"She'll live," Tony replied. "No thanks to you."

"Junior, this one isn't on me. Her going missing, yes, that was my fault. And I'm sorry. But I have nothing to do with it this time."

"Yeah, you're sorry." Tony shook his head. "You were the one who tried to pay off Keri so she'd take Heather and leave. And now you're sorry she's gone?"

"I didn't want Keri to die. I didn't want to hurt you."

"Bit late for that one, isn't it?"

Senior opened his mouth to answer, but Tony cut him off by muttering something about cleaning up and walking away. Still stunned, Senior turned around, facing Gibbs.

"I think it's time for you to go," Gibbs urged quietly.

"Can I at least know what happened to my granddaughter?" Senior asked, looking to McGee and Ziva, who both looked at Gibbs.

"Tony's choice, not ours."

Senior nodded, heading toward the elevator with McGee following behind as an escort.

* * *

Gibbs leaned against the bathroom wall, watching as Tony splashed cool water over his face. "I take it you told him to leave," the younger man said, without so much as a glance toward the door.

"Uh huh," Gibbs replied succinctly.

"I can't believe he knew all this time that it was his fault, and he never said anything. He got Keri killed."

Gibbs merely locked the door in response.

Tony shook his head, dropping onto his hands as they grasped the ledge of the sink. "They didn't deserve that."

"None of you did," Gibbs reasoned softly.

"Yeah, but… I mean… Keri… she was…" Tony closed his eyes tightly. "It was brutal. Wherever they were held, it was… we… we never found that scene. Thankfully, I think. I'm not sure I could've handled that."

Gibbs thought about assuring Tony that he could've, but decided against it, choosing instead to let the younger man continue his thoughts.

"I was afraid that when we did find it, we'd find Heather's body too. I mean, I felt that she was still alive, but… as a cop, you know the odds."

"Right."

"There was no trace left on Keri's body when they found it," Tony continued. "No way to pin down who did what. Just… knife marks."

Gibbs watched as Tony looked away in an attempt to keep his emotions in check.

"She, uh, she had been pregnant when she was murdered. Seven months." Tony closed his eyes, swallowing hard as he failed to keep his tears at bay. "They, uh, they cut the baby out."

Gibbs exhaled softly, reaching forward and putting his hand on Tony's shoulder as the younger man began sobbing softly.

"They never found him, either," Tony whispered through his tears.

Gibbs squeezed Tony's shoulder gently.

"And… and that bastard… he knew. He knew all this time. And he said nothing. My family was gone, and he said nothing. What kind of father does that?"

"I don't know," Gibbs said softly.

"I, uh, I think I need to go home and change," Tony muttered.

"Get some sleep, too. Ziva, McGee, and I can handle it."

Tony nodded absently, drying off his face and hands. He threw out the paper towel, unlocked the door, and made his way toward the nearest exit.

* * *

Gibbs made his way back into the squad room, finding McGee alone at his computer. He glanced at his junior agent, then at Ziva's empty desk, then back to McGee.

"She, uh, went on a coffee run," McGee offered.

Gibbs nodded. "Good. I need you to run something for me…"


	8. Chapter Seven

A/N: Life is too crazy for regular updates. I apologize. See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Seven

_**December 25, 1993**_

_Heather bounded into the room as early as she woke up, bouncing up and down on her parent's bed until they woke up. "It's Kissmas!" she proclaimed. "I wanna see what Santa left!"_

"_Hold your horses, Missy," Tony replied, grabbing her while Keri made her way to the kitchen. "Breakfast first."_

"_No! Pwesents fiwst."_

"_Uh-uh. You know the rules. Breakfast, then presents."_

_She pouted, but Tony pulled her close as he stood up out of bed. He carried the three-year-old into the kitchen, finding Keri already pouring their daughter a bowl of cereal to go with her sippy cup of apple juice. He gave her a good morning kiss, much to their daughter's disgust. The two shook their heads, and Tony helped Heather feed herself breakfast as Keri fixed something for the two of them._

_After breakfast, and the first batch of presents for Heather (since there would be a visit with Keri's family that would produce more later), Tony and Keri set about opening their own gifts. Tony found an envelope in his stocking, and opened it to find a small "To my Daddy on Christmas…" card. Figuring it was from Heather via Keri, he simply smiled and flipped it open quickly. When he did, a small picture fell out._

_An ultrasound picture. Dated four days ago._

_Tony glanced over at Keri, who simply shrugged and smiled. He wrapped his arms tightly around her, kissing her softly._

"_How come you do dat?" Heather asked, standing up._

"_It's a show of love," Tony explained._

"_Hugs awre bettew."_

"_Can she think that forever?" Tony asked Keri._

"_Let's hope so," Keri chuckled softly, taking Tony's hand._

_**January 26, 2010**_

_2:48 a.m._

Tony woke up as the door to his apartment creaked open, and he instinctively reached for his gun at his bedside. Footsteps made their way down the hall toward his bedroom, and he immediately clicked the safety off. A figure was barely visible as it stood in his doorway, and Tony narrowed his eyes in the darkness.

"Junior?"

Tony groaned out a sigh, clicking the safety back on his gun as Senior flipped on the lights. "Are you trying to make me shoot you?" the younger man asked.

"No," Senior replied. "I just thought we should talk."

"There's a thing called a phone, Dad. It also keeps me from accidentally killing you. Although, maybe I should just shoot you on principle alone. I mean, all I was doing was shooting an intruder. How was I to know it was you?"

"Funny, Junior."

Tony stared into his father's eyes. "What makes you think I'm kidding?"

Senior sighed heavily, sitting down on the bed next to his son. "We need to talk."

"_WE_ don't need to do anything. _You_ need to leave."

"Why are you acting like a child?"

"Because you couldn't even have the decency to tell me about Heather! All this time, you knew, and you said nothing. So why should I respect you as an adult when you're still a child about covering up your own mistakes? Especially when your mistakes hurt me. This is your fault."

"I know."

Tony shook his head, getting out of bed. "This… it's unacceptable, Dad. I've put up with a lot of your shit over the years, but this… this is… it's unacceptable. It's unforgivable. I mean, it's bad enough you tore our family apart when I was a kid, but you tear mine up when I'm an adult, and I'm supposed to pretend like everything's okay? I'm supposed to forgive you? I mean, what the hell do you want from me?"

"I just want you to hear me out."

"I've heard you. You screwed up. You pretend like you're sorry. I get that. But, it's not enough."

Senior sighed heavily. "What can I do?"

"Go back to your hotel. And maybe we'll talk again soon, or maybe we won't. Just don't break in here again, and don't expect to hear from Heather any time soon."

"You don't have control over her, Anthony."

"Dad, listen to me carefully," Tony said evenly. "Do not, under any circumstances, attempt to contact Heather. She's been through enough as it is. She doesn't need to know that her birth mother's dead because her paternal grandfather got into business with the wrong men."

"You can't threaten me, and you can't cut me off from her, Junior," Senior said.

"I could arrest you for breaking and entering right now, make sure you go through the system. And your court-appointed lawyers really won't do any good at getting you out of prison. How's that for cut off?"

Senior glared, but didn't say anything.

"Go home, Dad. Go home, and forget about D.C."

"You really hate me that much?" Senior said.

"Right now I do," Tony replied. "Think, Dad. Your 'mistake' lead to me losing one of the only women I've ever loved. I lost my daughter. I lost my family, the one thing I swore I'd protect. Part of the reason I became a cop. And not only did you not know, you didn't care. You still don't care. And honestly, right now, I'm not interested in your apologies. I'm not interested in anything but going back to sleep. So leave, now, or I'm having you arrested."

"You wouldn't."

"You really don't want to push me right now, Dad."

Senior shook his head. "I'll see you later," he said, walking out of the room. Tony closed his eyes and waited to hear his front door swing shut before locking it and sliding the chain in place. He tucked his gun away again and fell back asleep, albeit uneasily.

* * *

"Couldn't sleep last night?"

McGee's question was more concerned than anything, which caused Tony to reconsider his knee-jerk reaction of anger. Instead, the older man said, "Kinda hard to do when your father breaks in at 3 a.m."

"Why'd he break in?" McGee asked, placing a cup of coffee in front of Tony.

"To 'talk'."

"And he couldn't wait until today?"

"You've met my father, Tim. Are you really that surprised?"

McGee shrugged. "Guess not."

"Where are we on the case?" Tony changed subjects, sipping his coffee.

"Still with no apparent suspects and no apparent motive, but we're still combing the apartment security and cross-checking anyone with Hannah's dorm surveillance."

"Might not get anything. How's Hannah doing?"

"I thought you'd already know, considering…"

Tony shook his head. "Her parents are already in from Rhode Island."

"What about you?"

Tony shrugged. "What about me?"

"Well, I mean, you're her father."

Tony sighed. "It's a little more complicated than that, Tim."

McGee nodded, but didn't say anything.

"Tell Gibbs to call me if he needs me," Tony said, heading toward the elevator.

"Where are you going?" McGee asked, only to have his question answered by Tony waving his hand.

* * *

"I don't know what to do," Tony uttered quietly before squeezing Bert. Bert farted in response.

"Well, what is it that you're looking for?" Abby asked, shifting on her desk as she stared down at Tony.

"I don't know." He leaned back in her chair slightly.

"I mean, do you want her to be your kid, or not?"

"Well…"

"Yes, I know, she's already your kid. But, I mean, do you want her to call you Dad and give you birthday presents and act like your daughter? Or is it enough for you to know she's happy and alive?"

"Well, she's not exactly happy right now, Abbs."

"You know what I mean, Tony," she said, pushing the chair slightly with her foot.

"I guess, at least I know she's not dead. But… I can't really force a relationship if she doesn't want one. And then, what if she wants to meet my family? Does she really want to know what's become of me since her mother? What her grandfather really did that… made things happen?"

"Okay, look, I know it's his fault, but you might want to keep in mind that he lost his granddaughter and his daughter-in-law."

Tony scoffed. "Yeah, the daughter-in-law he tried to pay to leave me when Hannah was born."

"He did _what_?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, on second thought, she should never know him."

"She already knows him, Abbs," Tony reminded her.

"Okay, I mean, she shouldn't know him again," she clarified.

"He was right, though. I can't cut him off from her. For one, she's the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Branford. They're her parents, not me. And secondly, she's an adult. She doesn't need me to make her decisions for her."

"So let her make them for herself. Just, don't short change her."

"I don't even know if she wants _me_ in her life, let alone _him_."

"You'll never know if you don't ask."

Tony sighed. "Can't ask until she wakes up."

Abby shrugged. "I'm sure she'll be fine. And, really, I mean, how can she not want to know you? You're her daddy. Every girl wants to know her daddy."

"She already _has_ a daddy," Tony said.

"An adopted daddy," Abby replied. "It's different. I had this friend who was adopted, and growing up, all he wanted to do was find his real parents. Of course, he found out that they didn't want him, and didn't want to know him, but at least for Hannah, she knows that's not the case. She knows her daddy still loves her, and never gave up hope that she was alive, even when the odds were stacked against it."

Tony shrugged as Abby's computer beeped in the other room. "You wanna get that?" he asked, switching topics.

She furrowed her brow. "I'm not sure what that was," she said, standing. "DNA evidence from the dorm wouldn't be ready for running through the system yet. It's still processing. And I ran the fingerprints yesterday, but they all came back to Hannah and her staff. There was no foreign trace or anything, so I don't know what that was."

"Did you search for something?"

"I didn't, no." She made her way into the other room with Tony following behind her. After hitting a few keys, she pulled up the screen. "Oh, my God…"


	9. Chapter Eight

A/N: I'm so sorry this is so late, guys. I haven't had much time for anything lately. I'm especially sorry you guys had to wait this long for the resolution of the cliffhanter. Anyway, see the first chapter for the disclaimer. As always, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and please review.

* * *

Chapter Eight

_**June 29, 1994**_

_Tony pulled down the yellow crime scene tape before pulling the evidence seal off of the door. Not that he was entirely sure he was ready for what was behind the door, but he needed to do it anyway. He slowly clicked his key over in the lock before opening the door._

_It wasn't what he was expecting._

_There were clearly signs of a disturbance, but nothing bloody. Not much to indicate that either Heather or Keri had been injured. If anything, Tony would bet that Heather struggled more than Keri did. Three and a half year olds tend to have minds of their own._

_He sighed heavily, sinking into his couch. The one that Keri had picked out. He shook his head before grabbing up one of Heather's toys and throwing it into the TV, the only thing in the room that he could say was solely his idea. The toy busted through the glass screen, and Tony set about causing another disturbance over the already torn room._

_Pillows. Toys. Flowers. Remotes. Pictures. Nothing was quite spared as Tony vented his frustrations, fears, and feelings of uselessness. Because there was nothing he could do._

_They were gone. And he wasn't sure they'd ever come back._

_Tony's frustrations gave way to tears of loneliness, of longing, of love. He curled up with one of Keri's pillows and Heather's stuffed animals, holding them both close to his chest as he openly wept._

_He wept for the fear and the uncertainty. He wept for the loss of his life and love. But mostly, he wept because he wasn't sure what else to do. Police work hadn't turned up anything, their families were as clueless as he was, and no one in the neighborhood knew anything. He didn't know what else to do and where else to go._

_So he sat, amidst the shattered pieces of his former life, as he held on to the only things of theirs he had left and wept._

* * *

_**Still January 26, 2010**_

"Oh, my God."

Tony frowned as he stood behind her. "Abby, will you stop repeating that and tell me what's going on?" he asked.

"Y-you… I need to see Mc…Gibbs," she stuttered, hitting a few keys to lockdown the computer.

"Abby?"

The tech said nothing as she ran out of the lab, leaving a confused Tony in her wake.

* * *

"Why didn't you come to me?"

Gibbs said nothing as Abby glared slightly at him.

"About your search," she said.

Gibbs glanced over at Ziva, who nodded and excused herself for the ladies' room, before looking over at McGee.

"I needed her computer," McGee explained. "Mine was running down everyone's financials, as well as checking into Hannah's in-hall staff and residents within the building."

Gibbs silently nodded, turning his attention back to Abby as Tony made his way into the bullpen.

"Which, again, makes me ask why you didn't just come to me?" Abby asked.

"Come to you about what?" Tony interjected.

No one said anything.

"Will someone please tell me what the hell is going on?"

"You have a son," Abby blurted out.

"Abby," Gibbs said softly, before looking at Tony and noticing that the face of the senior field agent didn't change.

"What?" McGee asked.

"Oh, come on Timmy, like you didn't know?" Abby said. "What did you think he was asking you to search for?"

"I wasn't sure. He just asked me to search for children dropped off at hospitals for adoption in June and July of 1994 in Illinois and Massachusetts." As he spoke, McGee worked on accessing the search result.

"Let me guess, end of June or early July?" Tony asked, looking at Gibbs.

Gibbs said nothing, looking instead at Abby.

"Yeah, well, your search turned up a little boy, born June 27, 1994," Abby said. "He was dropped off at a hospital in Springfield, Illinois, with a note that said, 'I can't take care of him.' He was adopted on July 7, 1994."

"His name was Ryan," McGee read. "Adopted by Keith and Marie Burton."

"What happened to him?"

* * *

Ziva made her way back into the bullpen to find only McGee and Abby hunched behind his computer. "Where are Gibbs and Tony?" she asked.

"Stairs," Abby said.

"Why are they in the stairs and not the elevator?"

"Because that's where Tony went, and I think they're discussing Gibbs searching for Tony's son without Tony's knowledge."

"Abby," McGee said.

"What?" she asked. "She knew about the wife and daughter. I'm sure she already knew about the son."

"I actually did not," Ziva said quietly.

McGee sighed. "Apparently, Dr. Kerilyn DiNozzo was pregnant at the time she disappeared with her daughter."

"With a son?"

"Yeah. We think we _might_ have a lead on…"

The beep from McGee's computer cut his statement short, and after hitting a few keys, he sighed heavily. He glanced back at Abby, who was covering her mouth and trying to hold in her tears.

"So… who wants to tell him?"

* * *

"You couldn't just tell me you were going to run with it?" Tony asked. "I mean, I have to find out from McGee and Abby?"

Gibbs simply watched as Tony ranted and paced back and forth on one of the landings.

"You couldn't just talk to me about it?"

Gibbs' ringing phone preempted the team leader from responding, as he instead answered the phone with a quick, "Yeah, Gibbs."

Tony paused his pacing to watch Gibbs' reaction.

"Thanks, McGee," Gibbs said after a moment, hanging up his phone.

"Bad news, huh?" Tony said softly.

"Ryan died a year ago. Murdered, along with his parents. Case is still open."

Tony snorted softly. "See. This is why you should've asked me first."

Gibbs looked at him. "You knew?"

Tony nodded. "Police in Akron, Ohio contacted me fifteen months ago. When they found out Ryan was adopted, they ran his DNA through the system, hoping to get lucky, and they found the familial match to Heather and Keri in the Missing Person's Database. Asked if I knew anything about it. I didn't, though. I wasn't as sure that he was still alive as I was about Heather. Just told them to refer to the case file, because I didn't have much more than they did. Well, I do now, but I didn't then."

"Have you told them what you know now?"

Tony shook his head. "I'm not too sure what to make of it just yet. Where or how my father fits in to this." Tony sank down to the floor, with his back against the wall and his knees against his chest.

"DiNozzo, why didn't you come to me?" Gibbs asked, looking at his senior agent.

Tony frowned slightly. "It was while I was afloat. You had enough going on with Lee, Keating, and Langer. The thing with Ryan… I mean, he wasn't Navy. None of them were. And, telling you about him meant telling you about Keri and Heather, and I couldn't do that. Not like that. But by the time I got home, there wasn't much to say. Akron kept me informed, but there wasn't much there."

Gibbs sat down on the stairs across from Tony.

"All their leads went dead," Tony explained. "And no one could figure out why they were attacked. Just seemed random."

Gibbs simply watched his senior agent.

"So, now what?"

* * *

"Boss," McGee started as Gibbs walked in. "Case file is on its way from Akron. From what they've told us so far, it's…" McGee's voice trailed off as he noticed Tony behind Gibbs.

"Brutal," the senior agent finished.

"Yeah. You knew?"

"Over a year. They have anything new?"

"Depends on what you know."

"Fifteen months ago, Akron Police responded to the residence after a colleague of Keith Burton's reported that he hadn't shown up for work in a couple of days. When they got there, they saw that the front door was locked, both cars were in the driveway, but the living room window was open. Their best guess was that was point of entry and exit. Rain between time of death and time of discovery washed away any footprints that might have been left in the soil. Also, the curtains on the windows were soaked from the rain.

"Keith's blood was located in the living room, up the stairs, down the hall, and in Ryan's bedroom. His initial blood pool was in the living room, indicating he was knocked unconscious, then came to and went to check on his family, and ultimately was beaten to death in Ryan's room. Marie was killed while sleeping from a knife wound to the throat. Ryan was beaten and stabbed to death. Because most of the brutality was focused on Ryan, investigators started there. But those leads went cold, so they started looking at the parents. And then those leads went cold. They contacted me after Ryan was found to be adopted and that his blood had a familial match in Missing Persons to Keri and Heather. Kept me in the loop, but there wasn't too much to say after they contacted me."

"Except that you call every few weeks," McGee added gently.

Tony nodded. "I just want to make sure someone's still looking for who killed my son," he replied quietly.

McGee nodded.

"They send the pictures?" Tony asked.

"On their way, but are you sure you want to see them?" McGee countered.

"McGee, I watched my daughter nearly bleed to death. I've seen my wife's dead body. I think I can handle my son's."

McGee looked at Gibbs, who said nothing.

"Tony," Abby said softly.

"I'm not mad," he said. "I'm not sure I'm even sad anymore. It is what it is."

"He's your son."

Tony sighed, shaking his head. "Biologically speaking, but… I don't mean to sound bad, but I didn't know him. Never will. And I can't exactly dwell on that right now."

She nodded before reaching out and hugging Tony. He sighed, resting his head against her shoulder.

"Boss, do you really think these cases are related?" McGee asked.

Gibbs simply looked at him.


	10. Chapter Nine

A/N: I do apologize for the slow updates... a lot going on lately. See the first chapter for the disclaimer. As always, I hope you guys enjoy the story, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Nine

_**December 1, 1991**_

_Heather bounced in her swing while Keri scurried around, frantically getting together the food for the party. Tony, on the other hand, was hanging up decorations. "So, tell me again, who's coming?" he asked._

"_Some of your friends, some of my friends, my parents, my sister, my brother, and their kids," Keri replied._

"_Oldest?"_

"_Three."_

_Tony nodded._

"_What, you don't like any kids but ours?"_

_He shrugged, stepping down from the chair. "I don't mind any kids until they start crying."_

_As if on cue, Heather started crying, and Tony walked over, scooping her up. "You did that on purpose," he muttered, cradling her against him._

"_Dada," she said, hugging his neck._

"_Nah, I think she just wants to hang onto you," Keri said._

"_Daddy's got a lot of work to do here," Tony told the little girl in his arms._

"_Kitty?" she asked, looking up at him._

_Tony snickered._

"_No kitty," Keri said from the kitchen._

"_Kitty!" Heather demanded, twisting in Tony's arms to face Keri._

"_No."_

"_Kitty!"_

"_No."_

"_Kitty! Kitty! Kitty! Kitty! Kitty!"_

"_Hey, princess," Tony said, getting their daughter's attention. With Heather facing him, he said, "no kitty this time. But, be good, and there might be one soon."_

_Heather rested her head against Tony's shoulder as he winked at Keri. Keri shook her head, turning back to party prep._

* * *

_**January 27, 2010**_

Tony walked up to the room, finding Agent Cassie Yates standing outside the room. She nodded at Tony quietly. "How's everything?" he asked.

"Quiet so far," she replied. "Checking in with the victim? That's new for you."

Tony shrugged. "New year, new leaf. Parents in there?"

Cassie nodded. "Karen and David Branford. They check out?"

"They have nothing to do with any part of this case. Just unfortunate victims."

Cassie frowned. "What do you mean?"

Tony shook his head, and Cassie nodded again. He hesitated at the doorway, just watching Hannah and her parents.

"So, who is this girl to you?" Cassie asked gently.

Tony glanced over at her.

"Come on, Tony. I can tell she's not just another victim. So, who is she to you?"

"It's a long story," he simply said, looking back into the room. Karen caught his eye, and she waved him into the room. He walked in, closing the door behind him. "I'm Agent DiNozzo," he said softly.

"I figured," Karen replied, matching his tone. "Hannah said you were tall with light brown hair."

He nodded with a hint of a smile.

"She, um, when she called me and said that she'd found her biological father, I almost had a heart attack. I mean, _we_ didn't even know who you were. It was a closed adoption. So we were curious how she had found you. But when she asked if we had known…"

"Yeah," Tony breathed.

"I'm sorry. We so badly wanted a child, we just thought…"

"It's not your fault. And I'm glad that she ended up with good people."

"You don't even know us," David said.

"Hannah's a great person," Tony reasoned. "She was raised well, by good people."

Both Karen and David smiled slightly.

"Anyway, I, uh, was just stopping by for a minute on my way in," Tony said. "I'll leave you guys alone." He turned and started heading for the door.

"Agent DiNozzo?" Karen said.

He stopped, looking back. "Just Tony."

"Tony. Would you like to see some pictures of her growing up? We'll send them to you. I mean, I don't know how Hannah feels about the whole situation, but I can't imagine what it'd be like to lose a child. I know it won't be the same as having been there, but maybe you might like them?"

Tony smiled slightly. "Uh, sure. Yeah, that'd be great. If Hannah's okay with it."

"I'll ask her when she wakes up."

Tony nodded. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

"We'll see you later?" David asked.

"Yeah," Tony replied quietly. He turned, walking out of the room. He kept his head down as he walked past the inquisitive Cassie, and didn't react until after the elevator doors had closed.

* * *

An hour later, a still shaky Tony got off the elevator to the squad room, finding Gibbs alone in the bullpen. The senior agent sat down behind his desk, not even drawing a glance from the team leader.

"Should I want pictures?" Tony asked after a moment.

Gibbs shrugged.

"Would you? Want to see evidence of your daughter growing up with someone else? Thinking that these two strangers were her parents? Would it make you feel any better about not being able to be there?"

Gibbs didn't respond.

Tony sighed, putting his head down. "On the one hand, it'd be nice to see those things and hear her memories and stories. But on the other hand, it's everything I wanted to see and never got the chance. But, Ryan's family, they gave me their pictures, so maybe I should? I never actually looked at Ryan's though…"

"Share 'em with Hannah," Gibbs said.

"What if she doesn't want me in her life?"

Gibbs looked up from the file in front of him. "She called you for help."

Tony looked at Gibbs. "Because I'm a cop. I could've actually done something."

"She had my card. McGee's too."

Tony bit his lip.

"Could've just dialed 911 or campus security."

"Okay, I get it. She called me because she knew I'd come running. But maybe she only called me because she figured her attacker was the same person who shot her boyfriend. And if she did… why are they coming after her? Did they kill him to get close to her? Or did they go after her because they were afraid she'd ID them?"

Gibbs simply watched him.

Tony furrowed his brow. "What if they did kill him to get to her?"

"Motive?" Gibbs asked.

"To go after her?"

Gibbs nodded.

"No clue. Maybe she does."

"She awake yet?"

Tony shook his head. "I'm not sure anyone will notify me when she is."

Gibbs was silent.

"Okay, maybe they would," Tony said. "But I don't know. Maybe they wouldn't. If you were them, would you want me around?"

Gibbs didn't answer.


	11. Chapter Ten

A/N: I'm so incredibly sorry for the incredibly long delay. I've been super, super busy. See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I also can't guarantee I'm going to be back to updating regularly. I just at least have something to post. As always, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Ten

_**June 5, 1993**_

_Her tiny hand gripped his as they walked through the zoo, eyes wide with wonder and excitement. He smiled down at his two and a half year old daughter as she took in all the animals._

"_Daddy, look!" she said, pointing at a giraffe. "Tall!"_

"_Yes," Tony replied. "Do you know what that is?"_

"_Tall!"_

"_Do you know what kind of animal it is?"_

_She furrowed her brow. "Tall."_

_He chuckled softly. "Okay, I guess I deserved that one."_

_She giggled slightly._

"_That's a giraffe, honey."_

"_Giraffe," she repeated. "He tall."_

"_Yes, he is," Tony said. "But I think he's a she."_

"_How can you tell, Daddy?"_

_Tony paused, unsure of how to answer. Finally, he said, "because boys and girls look different."_

"_Why?"_

_Again, Tony paused. After a moment, he grinned. "Ask Mommy when she gets home from work."_

"_Okay, Daddy."_

_Tony kept grinning._

* * *

_**Still January 27, 2010**_

The night watch was standing guard, and fortunately for Tony, it wasn't an agent who would feel comfortable asking him too many questions. Instead, the two exchanged nods, and Tony ducked inside the mostly empty room.

Just him and his daughter.

He sat beside her bed, picking up her hand gently. He squeezed her hand, curling her fingers around his. He shook his head slowly.

"I'm sorry if this makes you uncomfortable, holding my hand," he said softly. "I guess it just makes me feel a little better or something. Make me forget that someone's trying to kill you."

She didn't respond.

He brought his free hand up to his face, scrubbing it slowly. "I wish the circumstances were different. But I know you have a good life, and great parents. And if there's anything you might need from me, please, let me know."

"You're not leaving, are you?" she croaked softly, keeping her eyes closed.

He smiled slightly. "No, not unless you want me to," Tony replied.

"I don't."

He nodded as she opened her eyes, squeezing his hand softly.

"I'm sorry, Agent," she said softly.

"You don't need to apologize," Tony replied, shaking his head.

"I, uh, I don't know what to call you."

"That's okay too."

"I don't know why I called you."

"Hannah, it's okay."

She sighed softly. "I would ask why you're being so nice to me, but considering everything…"

He smiled.

"Are my parents here?" she asked.

"Pretty sure they just went to the hotel for the night," he replied. "I could call them…"

"No, it's okay," she interrupted.

He nodded.

"I, uh, I don't know if I should feel weird about us talking with them here but not here, you know?"

He snorted slightly. "Yeah."

She sighed, shifting somewhat in the bed.

"Can I ask you a few questions?" Tony asked.

"I don't know what happened," Hannah replied. "I didn't see his face. The only thing he said was, 'you're gonna pay for what he did.'"

He furrowed his brow. "He who? Midshipman Johnson?"

She half-shrugged, half-shook her head. "I don't know. He never said who 'he' was." She closed her eyes. "And it's… it's not like he was in an explaining mood." She struggled to keep her voice steady, and he could feel her hand shaking in his.

"It's okay," he said gently. "You're safe now."

She shook her head again. "Not if he knows I'm still alive," she whispered, tears starting to fall down her face. "He's gonna kill me. He wants to make 'him' suffer."

"Hannah, look at me."

She opened her watery eyes, staring into her father's face.

He gripped her hand tighter, but not squeezing it too hard. "No one. Is going. To hurt you. I promise. I won't let them."

She gave him a half-smile. "You sound so sincere when you say that."

"That's because I mean it."

She reached out, hugging him gently. He held her close, rubbing her back.

"There's an agent outside your door," Tony told her quietly. "If you have any concerns, I can have him sit in with you."

"You're leaving?" Hannah asked, turning her head to look at him.

"No, not yet. But when I do, I want you to know there's someone out there looking over you. And if they screw up, they're gonna hear it from me."

She smiled. "And I'm sure you'd give them hell."

He returned her grin.

* * *

_Click_.

He readjusted the zoom lens before taking another photo of Hannah and Tony. Once finished, he plugged his camera into his laptop, downloading the photos in his car as he took a bite of the day-old pizza. He turned up his nose, spit the bite out, and threw it into the relatively empty box. He hit a few keys on the keyboard, zooming in on the face in the picture. He cleaned up the photo, taking out as much of the blurriness as he could.

He smirked. "I got you now, you son-of-a-bitch."


	12. Chapter Eleven

A/N: All, I'm very sorry it's been so long between updates. I've been wicked busy with a bunch of stuff. And after this chapter, there might be another long hiatus because I'm hitting a wall with this story (somewhat). See the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review.

* * *

Chapter Eleven

_**August 8, 1992**_

_Tony stood in the back room with the rest of his groomsmen, readjusting his suit for the umpteenth time._

"_Nervous?" Mark asked._

_Tony half shrugged, half shook his head. "Not really," he replied. "I love Keri. We already have a family. Nothing to be nervous about. She's not planning on running."_

_Nick chuckled. "She probably should," he said. "You're nothin' but trouble, Sex Machine."_

"_Especially considering that's what got you Heather in the first place," Phil added._

"_Yeah, yeah," Tony retorted, rolling his eyes._

"_You sure you wanna do this?" Carl asked._

"_How many times are you gonna ask, Carl?"_

"_Dude, you're 21. You haven't even lived yet."_

_Tony rolled his eyes again._

_Before anyone else said anything, the door creaked open, and Heather toddled in, followed by Keri's sister Priscilla. "Dada!" she exclaimed, rushing over and hugging his leg despite the box in her hand._

"_Hey, Princess," Tony said, scooping her up._

"_Fwom Mama." Heather pushed the box into Tony's face, causing chuckles from the gathered group._

"_Thanks." He balanced her on his hip as he grabbed the box out of her little hands. He placed it on the table next to him before walking to a chair and picking up another box. "Can you give this to Mama for me?"_

"_Uh huh!"_

"_Good." He kissed her on the cheek before putting her down and winking at Priscilla._

"_Come on, honey," Priscilla said, putting her hand on Heather's shoulder to guide her out of the room._

"_Buh-bye, Dada," Heather said._

"_See you soon, Princess," Tony replied as the two ladies made their way out of the room._

"_Okay, maybe kids aren't so bad," Carl conceded._

_Tony simply smiled._

* * *

_**January 28, 2010**_

Tony made his way into the bullpen, stopping at Gibbs' desk. The team leader looked up at him.

"She said the man who attacked her was trying to get revenge on 'him,'" the younger man told him.

"You interviewed her?" Gibbs asked.

"Off the record. Follow up being done as we speak by Ziva."

Gibbs said nothing.

"I just can't figure out who 'he' is," Tony said, stepping back to lean against McGee's desk. "The midshipman? My father? Who?"

Gibbs' phone rang, effectively cutting off Tony's line of questioning. After a few moments, he hung up. "Abby's got an answer for us."

* * *

The two of them walked into Abby's lab to find the tech with a downtrodden expression on her face. "So, we found a stray hair in…" she started, turning around and letting her voice trail off as she recognized Tony standing behind Gibbs.

"Hannah's room," Tony finished for her.

"The DNA was degraded, so it took a little while to get a decent enough sample to run with, but I finally got a match."

"To who?"

"Ryan David Cortland."

Tony froze, and Gibbs watched the younger man. "You know him?" the older man asked.

"Arrested him," Tony replied. "About fifteen years ago. He raped and beat three girls to death in Peoria. It was the first serial case I worked on. One of the first cases we proved with DNA. Always said he was innocent, though, that he'd just had rough sex with them. All the evidence said otherwise, though. He broke in, raped them, forced objects in them, and beat them to death. Almost didn't get the conviction. He was one of those pillar of the community types. Had a wife and a six-year-old son. Neither of which had any idea what he was doing. Sick guy. But we had DNA, the new science that was just proven. Nailed him."

"How'd his DNA get at our scene?"

"I don't know. He died in prison four years ago. Stabbed by an inmate."

"What happened to the wife and son?"

Tony sighed. "Wife left him after the conviction, took the son with her. Don't know where they went. They changed their names, moved away. I never thought about it. I moved away myself."

"He ever threaten you?"

Tony shrugged. "Half the people I arrested did. I didn't exactly take it personally."

"Abby, any other DNA at the scene?"

Abby shook her head. "Just Hannah, Midshipman Johnson, and a few of Hannah's staff members and residents," she said.

"All of which have given statements that they've been in there," Tony added.

"We need to find that wife and son," Gibbs said.

* * *

"Ryan Cortland," McGee began. "Married Janice Emerson, had one son, Keith Cortland. After Ryan's conviction, Janice and Keith moved to Raleigh, North Carolina under the names Jacqueline and Kevin Hartford. Jacqueline remarried to Alfred Dawson, who adopted Kevin and gave him his last name."

"So, Keith Cortland is Kevin Dawson," Tony summarized.

"Yeah."

"Twenty-one years old. That makes him a… senior in college?"

"Yeah. At…"

Ziva entered the bullpen. "I talked to Hannah," she started. "And she thinks she has an idea about the guy who did this. Said he smelled a little like one of the guys she works with. A…" Her voice trailed off as she looked at her notes.

"Kevin?" Tony asked.

Ziva looked up. "Yes."

"Kevin Dawson was one of the people we interviewed," McGee said. "Said he'd been in her room a time or two, that they were friends. He'd gone over to offer his condolences."

"What, for killing her boyfriend?" Tony grumbled.

"This wasn't about her boyfriend," Gibbs said to Tony. "Or your father. It's about you."

Tony sighed. "I'm the 'him.' Kevin, what's his major?"

McGee hit a few keys before looking up. "Psychology with a minor in Forensic Sciences," he reported. "Working on his senior thesis, which appears to be about either wrongful convictions, the perfect crime, prison mentality, or the psychology behind police officers and their convictions."

"You can't tell for sure?" Tony asked.

"His library search doesn't pinpoint which one he's looking at specifically. It's one of them."

"We know what he wants," Gibbs said, looking at Tony.

Tony smiled. "Then, let's use it to our advantage."


	13. Chapter Twelve

A/N: Sorry for the slow updates. Things have been really crazy lately. See the first chapter for the disclaimer. As always, I hope you guys enjoy the chapter, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Twelve

_**May 3, 1995**_

_It had been days that felt like weeks, and weeks that felt like months, but they finally had a solid lead in their case._

_Ryan David Cortland._

_Truth be told, Tony had trouble believing it at first. Maybe that was just because he was still developing his street smarts, or maybe it was because the guy was the leader of the local youth group. Coached soccer and taught Bible class. Loved his wife, Janice, and six-year-old son Keith. There wasn't a single person in Peoria that could utter a dirty word about Ryan Cortland._

_And yet, the evidence said he was a murdering rapist._

_They took a soft approach on the house when arresting him, despite the fact that Janice and Keith weren't home at the time. When they booked him, they took his DNA sample._

_Perfect match._

_They had their man._

_And while Tony sat and waited in the atria of the courthouse, waiting for another case of his on the docket, Ryan Cortland looked at him._

"_You," Ryan said._

_Tony regarded him slightly._

"_I'm gonna make you suffer for this. You had no right. Your ass is mine, you hear me? You're gonna suffer for this. I haven't done anything wrong. You planted my DNA. And when I get out, I'm gunning for you."_

_Tony thought about telling Ryan that threatening an officer would just buy him more jail time, but held his tongue as he watch the deputies take Ryan away to prison._

_And within a few hours, the threat of Ryan Cortland was nothing but a memory._

* * *

_**January 29, 2010**_

"Are we sure this is going to work?" Abby asked, nipping at her nails nervously.

"Yes," McGee said.

"And he'll be okay?"

"Yes. Don't worry, Abby. Everything'll work out fine."

* * *

Tony made his way into the woods, stopping in a small open area behind the dormitory. He spun in a circle slowly, seeing nothing but trees, dirt, and rocks. "I know you're out here, Kevin," Tony said. "Show yourself."

"And why, exactly, would I want to do that, Agent DiNozzo?" Kevin's voice resonated from behind a rock, a tree, and the ground in some sort of triangle.

Tony looked around to try to find the speakers. "Because you want to end this. It's all for your father, right? Ryan Cortland?"

A half-chuckle surrounded him. "I figured you'd get it if I left the hair at the scene. One of the few pieces of my father that I still have left."

He turned his attention to a wire leading away from the rock. "Yeah, I heard about that. Stabbed four years ago. You were what, a senior in high school? Have you been planning this that long?"

"Longer."

"Probably since he was first arrested, you hated me, but in case you haven't learned throughout your research, your father was guilty."

"You planted that evidence. And you left Peoria shortly after that."

Tony shook his head as he realized the wire lead to the tree. "First of all, I never planted evidence. Not once. And second of all, I left Peoria for very different reasons."

"Hannah. Or, do you call her Heather?"

Tony walked toward the tree. "How did you find out about that?"

"Oh, I've been studying you for a long time, Agent DiNozzo. Studying criminology. Not too hard to find out that you had lost your daughter. And your son too, if I recall correctly. Ryan, right? Lived with that family in Akron. I bet it stung like hell when you found out that not only had he survived Keri's original murder, but that he'd been murdered himself. Now, I wish I could claim that for myself, but actually I just found out who that was. Didn't know Ryan existed myself before that. I'd love to thank him in person. Of course, I won't ever tell you who. And even still, I only picked her boyfriend because he was easy to get to. I knew him, knew where he lived, knew he was Navy. Knew it would get _your_ attention. I mean, the only drawback was I had to listen to her whine about losing Pat."

"She trusted you."

Another laugh encompassed the clearing. "Yeah, she did," Kevin's voice resounded. "Enough that she asked me for advice in regards to you. Told me all about the situation. Asked me if she should get to know you or leave it alone. After all, she'd always wondered about her birth parents. Wondered what her mother was like. Did ya tell her she's dead?"

Tony shook his head again. "We haven't talked about family much," he said, finding a transmitter attached to the tree. _He doesn't even have to be too close to be doing this_, he thought. _But if this is really his endgame, he's gotta be watching nearby._

"That's too bad. Guess you never really will, huh?"

Tony shrugged one shoulder. "Well, I probably will if you never come out of hiding."

Kevin laughed again. "For a guy that works for a Marine sniper, you're pretty dense. I'm sure you've figured out by now that I don't have to be anywhere near the clearing for talking to you. And I also don't have to be anywhere near the clearing to kill you."

"Yeah, but your killing style is more up-close. And hey, I'm your target. So why would you all of a sudden go long-distance on me?"

"Because I know you didn't come alone." Kevin appeared from behind a tree with McGee in front of him as a human shield. "Of course, your boy here sticks out like a sore thumb. So where are Gibbs and Ziva?"

"You tell me," Tony said. "You're the one who's so convinced they're here."

"Ziva's probably hiding somewhere off to your left, at this point. And Gibbs would be off toward your right."

Tony shrugged again. "Maybe they are, and maybe they're not. Maybe my only back-up was Tim. Then again, maybe there are more people at play here than just the four of us. After all, coming alone wasn't one of your conditions."

Kevin rolled his eyes. "Implicit condition."

"Requires explicit mentioning."

Kevin shrugged. "I'm over it. Especially since I know your game. Since I didn't tell you to come unarmed, why don't you fork over the gun you're carrying under your jacket?"

Tony scoffed lightly. "You really have been studying me, huh?" he asked, removing his gun and tossing it toward Kevin and McGee.

"Enough to know your back-up is on your right ankle," Kevin replied.

Tony removed it and tossed it over as well, shaking his head more in McGee's direction than Kevin's. "You're good."

"And you have a knife concealed at your waist."

Tony pulled it out, holding it up for Kevin's edification. As he did, McGee dropped slightly, enough for Tony to throw the knife into Kevin's neck. As Kevin fell, Tony said, "Guess my skill with a knife wasn't exactly in your research, was it?"


	14. Chapter Thirteen

A/N: I'm gonna see if I can get two up today. :) See the first chapter for the disclaimer. As always, I hope you enjoy, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Thirteen

_**February 13, 1992**_

_Her little hands pounded out a gentle beat on the shopping cart as she smiled, watching as he looked to pick out the perfect Valentine's gift for his fiancée. He nipped slightly on his lip, thinking._

"_Dada," she said, still drumming away._

"_Yeah, honey?" he replied, looking down into the jewelry case._

"_Want kitty."_

"_Not right now."_

"_Why?"_

"_Because Mommy said so."_

"_No Mama."_

_He looked up from the jewelry case to his daughter. "I happen to agree with Mommy."_

"_Why?" she asked innocently._

"_Kitties are a lot of work."_

_She gave him a sad look, her eyes starting to well up with tears as she stopped beating on the cart._

_He took a deep breath to steady himself. "We can get a new toy, but not a kitty," he offered. Her frown lessened more into a pout than anything, and Tony took that as a small victory in avoiding a temper-tantrum. He leaned in and kissed her on the top of the head before turning back to the jewelry case. A woman behind the case walked up to him._

"_Need help deciding?" she asked._

"_A little," Tony replied. "Trying to pick out something nice for my fiancée."_

_The woman arched her eyebrows as she looked at the little girl in the cart and back at Tony._

"_Mama," Heather said._

"_Yeah, something nice for Mama," he said to her._

_The woman bit her lip, turning back to the jewelry._

"_Mama kitty," Heather suggested, tapping once again on the cart._

"_I'm not getting Mama a kitty," Tony replied. "She doesn't want a kitty right now."_

_Heather frowned again._

"_Remember, be good and you get a toy," Tony reminded her._

_She remained quietly tapping on the cart._

"_You know, bribing them is not a good way of shaping behavior," the woman behind the counter said._

"_It's not bribing, it's positive reinforcement," Tony replied. "And if all you're going to do is judge me and how I handle my daughter, I'd really like someone else to help me. Otherwise, I'm leaving."_

_She sighed, but walked away._

"_She mean," Heather commented._

_Tony just smirked._

* * *

_**Still January 29, 2010**_

Tony made his way into the hospital, winding his way to Hannah's room. Karen and David were sitting at their daughter's bedside, as Cassie remained watch outside. "We can stand down," he told her.

"Got him?" she asked.

Tony nodded.

"In custody?"

"In Autopsy."

She nodded sadly. "You okay?"

"Fine," he replied, glancing into the room.

"You gonna tell her?"

"She'll know something's up either way."

"It's someone she knows?"

Tony nodded.

Cassie sighed. "Damn," she said. "It sucks enough that this happened to her. Let alone that it was done by someone she knows."

"She already knows that she knows him," he replied. "She told Ziva that."

Cassie nodded, patting Tony on the back. "Good luck."

"Thanks." He knocked quietly on the door before entering her hospital room. Karen, David, and Hannah all turned to look at him.

"Something wrong?" Karen asked, somewhat nervously.

"I, uh, I just came to tell you that we caught him," Tony replied.

"Was it Kevin?" Hannah asked.

Tony nodded slowly.

"Is he…"

"He's done hurting anyone," Tony answered gently.

Hannah nodded solemnly, understanding what he meant.

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," she said.

Tony nipped his bottom lip slightly.

Hannah noticed his hesitation, having made that same face when she didn't want to say something. "Mom, Dad, can you give us a minute?" she asked.

"Sure, honey," Karen said.

"We'll be right outside," David added, squeezing her hand. The two of them stood up and walked out of the room.

"What aren't you saying?" Hannah asked as the door closed.

"What makes you think I'm not saying something?" Tony replied, moving slightly closer to the bed.

"Because I make the same face when I don't want to say something. I am your daughter, huh?"

He smirked slightly before inhaling deeply. "It was Kevin," he started softly. "Kevin killed Pat and tried to kill you."

She swallowed. "Why?"

"Because he was trying to get my attention. To get me."

"Why?"

Tony sighed, sitting down. "Kevin used to be Keith Cortland. His father was Ryan David Cortland."

"The rapist?"

He nodded, furrowing his brow.

"Kevin used to talk about how that case was mishandled. I didn't realize it was his father's case. Though, it makes sense now… why else would he care so much about the case?"

He rubbed his neck quietly.

"If he wasn't already dead, I'd kill him."

He smirked slightly. "Nice thing to say to a federal agent," he reminded her.

She shrugged. "You wouldn't arrest me."

"Only if I had to."

"So, I'll make sure you won't have to. Stick with NCIS."

He chuckled softly.

Her smile faded as she blinked slowly.

"You okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she replied quietly.

"You're lying."

"What makes you think that?"

"Because I do the same thing. You are my daughter, huh?"

She rolled her eyes.

"So, what's on your mind?" Tony asked.

Hannah sighed. "Why me and Pat?" she asked. "I mean, _I_ didn't even know I was your daughter until a few days ago. How did he know and choose me?"

"He chose Pat because he was a Midshipman, which gave him me. He chose you after you identified to him that you were my daughter. How else would you screw with me? My team's practically untouchable. Except for the Trojan Horse. And the guy who tried to kill Abby. And the time I had the plague…"

"Wait, you had the plague?" she asked.

"Pneumonic plague, to be exact," Tony clarified.

"You know, they're actually all the same bug. The only difference is where the bug infiltrates your body. If you get it through skin contact, it's bubonic. If you get it through the lungs, it's pneumonic. If it gets directly into the bloodstream, you get septicemic."

"They teach you a lot of things in that college of yours, huh?"

She smiled slightly.

"You've got your mother's brains," he added. "You look a lot like her."

"You have any pictures?" she asked gently.

"I have a lot. We can go through them sometime, if you'd like."

"I think I'd like that."

He nodded slowly, smiling.

"Thanks."

"Anyway, I, uh, I think I'll let you get back to your parents and resting," he said. "I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Okay," she replied. "Night, Tony."

"Night, Sweetie." He gave her a gentle hug before leaving the room for the night.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

A/N: As promised, a second chapter for today. I hope you guys enjoy this one, and please review. :)

* * *

Chapter Fourteen

_**October 31, 1992**_

_Her hand moved his way up his thigh, and he moaned softly. Her finger teased the bottom of his boxers as he ran his across her shoulder blades. Their mouths meshed together, tongues locked in a heated battle for the upper hand. Their bodies pushed closer together, desiring each other more and more with each passing moment._

_And then, the door creaked open._

_The two of them paused, holding each other, wondering if they'd really heard the door. And they realized they had when two little hands started grabbing at and pulling down the bed sheets. The two of them broke apart, her straightening out her nightgown as he scooped up the little girl over the side of the bed._

"_What's up, Princess?" he asked._

"_Can't sweep," Heather replied._

"_What's wrong?"_

_She shrugged, patting on his bare chest as Keri stroked her daughter's hair._

"_Did you have a bad dream?" he continued, bouncing her slightly on the bed._

"_No," she replied._

"_Then what's going on?"_

_She shrugged again._

_He simply nodded, having realized this was just a girl thing._

"_What were you and Mommy doing?" she asked, looking up at him._

_He glanced over at Keri._

"_We were talking," she explained to her daughter._

_The little girl nodded, burrowing her head against his chest. He glanced over at Keri with a tight smirk on his face._

* * *

_**February 3, 2010**_

"I can get that up the stairs by myself, you know," Hannah muttered.

"I know that," Tony replied, readjusting his grip on the bags.

"Really. You didn't need to come here. Or carry anything for me."

"You just got done being shot for the first time. I think that warrants a little help with the groceries."

Hannah shrugged. "Kinda hoping there isn't a second time, you know."

"What's your major?" Tony countered.

"Pre-med," she replied.

"And when you become a doctor, you want to work…"

"In the ER."

"Sadly, depending on where in the world you work, there may be a second time. And a third time. Or more."

She rolled her eyes. "Thanks for the vote of confidence there."

He shrugged. "Not vote of confidence. More like shot of reality. No pun intended."

She shook her head, making her way down the hallway to her door. "You still didn't need to help. Or even go grocery shopping with me." She opened the door, and the two of them walked in the room.

"Technically speaking, you came grocery shopping with me."

She placed her bags down. "Okay, if you wanna split hairs, fine. I went with you. But why invite me anyway?"

He shrugged again as he put the bags down. "Why not? You'd asked to spend more time with me."

"So you take me on your chores with you?" she asked, smirking as she began to unpack the bags and put the groceries away.

"That, and you complained the other day that you didn't have any snacks for studying in your room," he replied, smiling as he helped her unpack.

"Yeah, but I could've gone by myself. Or with Natey. He's been helping me out with stuff."

"He's a good kid."

Hannah rolled her eyes. "You know, I already have one over-protective dad. I don't really need a second one."

Tony smiled. "True."

She tilted her head back and forth. "Though, I suppose that you were the over-protective father first."

He frowned. "Maybe if I'd been better…"

"Hey," she interrupted as they finished. "Look, I know it wasn't ever what you intended, but I still ended up with a pretty good life. My mom and dad were awesome. I have other siblings who were adopted." She furrowed her eyebrows slightly. "Hopefully legally." She shrugged that thought off. "Either way, it ended up okay. I mean, I wasn't hurt. I'm not dead. That's got to be a bonus, huh?"

He smiled. "Yeah. Wish I could say the same for Ryan."

She frowned slightly. "Ryan?"

Tony froze momentarily. "Uh, yeah, Ryan."

"Who's Ryan?" Hannah asked.

He sighed, sitting down in her desk chair as she climbed onto the bed. "Ryan was your brother," he began slowly. "Your mom was pregnant with him when…"

"We were kidnapped," she filled in.

He nodded. "Your mom, she was murdered. They cut the baby out, and dropped him off at a hospital in Illinois that June. He was adopted into a good family, the Burtons."

"You keep saying 'was.' I'm assuming that means Ryan died?"

"Yeah," he said softly.

"How?"

"Murdered. Beaten and stabbed to death."

"By Kevin," she guessed.

"No," he replied. "But Kevin knew who did it. He never said who, but he said he knew."

She sighed softly. "So, I had a brother, and never knew it. Do I have any other siblings you haven't told me about?"

"If you do, I promise that I don't know about them," he replied. "I… I haven't exactly had much luck with commitment since your mom. I mean, I kinda fell for another doctor, but… I don't know. It was an assignment, and I think I only really fell for her because she reminded me so much of your mom… it was a mistake with her. And beyond that, I haven't found anyone else that can hold a candle to her. She was so beautiful, so charming, everything I could've ever asked for. And you look a lot like her. If you'd like, I'll show you pictures sometime."

Hannah nodded. "I'd like that."

Tony smiled. "I also have pictures of Ryan, too. I've never looked at them, but his family wanted me to have them too."

"They probably felt bad, because it's not like you willingly gave Ryan up. Or me, for that matter. Wait, did my parents give you pictures too?"

He furrowed his brow. "I thought they cleared that with you."

She frowned. "Not that I remember. Unless they asked me when I was in the hospital. Which isn't fair, because I was on pain killers."

He smiled slightly.

"That's okay, though. They just want you to feel like you were there, and I'm okay with that. I mean, I know it's not actually being there, but it's close."

"Yeah."

"From what I can remember, though, you were an awesome dad. And a pushover. Except about the kitty thing."

Tony laughed. "I'm pretty sure 'kitty' was one of your first words," he said.

Hannah smiled. "You used to always call me 'Princess.' And Mom worked nights, right?"

He nodded.

"By the way, fifth birthday- got a kitty," she said.

He chuckled. "We were wearing Keri down. I think we'd have had her cracked by then. Especially if Ryan had jumped in too."

She smiled. "You know, you have perishables outside," she reminded him. "And I have homework to do. And while I'd really love to continue this line of conversation, I have class in the morning."

"Yeah, and I have work," he replied, standing.

She jumped off her bed. "I do, however, have some free time this weekend, if you wanna get together. We can look at pictures and stuff."

He smiled. "Sure. That sounds good."

"I'll call you Saturday morning."

"Okay, good."

She reached out and hugged him tightly, catching him off-guard. He returned the hug. "Thank you," she said as she pulled back. "You know, for today."

"Yeah," he replied quietly. "You're welcome. Anytime."

She walked him the three short steps to the door before opening it for him to leave. He made his way out, smiling at her.

"See you later, Hannah," he said.

"Bye, Tony," she replied. As he walked down the hallway away from her and she closed the door, she whispered, "good night, Dad."


	16. Epilogue

A/N: I know, I usually give you some warning when I'm ending a story, but I didn't this time. This is the last chapter of this one. I'm glad you guys have stuck with me on this one, and I thank you all so much for your reviews. As always, see the first chapter for the disclaimer. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, and thanks again. :)

* * *

Epilogue

_**May 31, 1993**_

_Tony pulled the boiling pot of water and spaghetti off of the stove while Keri sliced up vegetables for the salad. Heather played behind them in the dining room, running in between the chairs. As Tony went to pour out the water, he spilled some on his hand._

"_Fuck," he swore, catching Keri's attention. She walked over to look at it._

"_You'll be fine," she told him. "Just run it under some cold water."_

_He nodded as he finished pouring out the water and rinsing the pasta under hot water. Once finished, he ran his hand under the cold water while the pasta drained again._

_Heather dropped one of her toys, losing it under the table. "Fuck," she said, repeating after her father._

_Tony scoffed and laughed slightly while Keri's mouth dropped open. "What did you just say, young lady?" she admonished her daughter._

"_Fuck," Heather said again._

"_That's a bad word. Don't ever say that word again."_

"_Daddy said it."_

_Tony bit his lip, trying not to laugh._

"_Don't repeat everything Daddy says," Keri told her, cutting a glance over at Tony and knowing he was cracking up on the inside._

"_Daddy says a lot of bad words," Tony added, fighting back amusement._

"_Daddy, what's funny?" Heather asked._

"_Nothing's funny. Daddy's hand just hurts."_

_Heather looked really confused._

"_Don't repeat everything Daddy says," Tony said, turning his back to his daughter so she couldn't see the smirk on his face._

_Heather climbed down to get her toy while Keri turned to Tony. "Sometimes, you are no help," she said to him quietly._

"_I'm sorry, honey," he told his wife. "But it's just too funny to hear our two year old swear."_

_She shook her head with a slight smile, more at Tony's amusement than their daughter's behavior._

* * *

_**February 6, 2010**_

The intercom buzzed, and he quickly allowed the person to come in before turning back to his cooking. A few moments later, there was a knock on the door, and he made his way over to the door. He opened it wide for Hannah to come in with her arms full of binders.

"Thanks," she said.

"No problem," he replied. "Come on in, make yourself comfortable."

Hannah walked over toward the couch, placing the binders down on the table in front of them before looking up to his entertainment wall. "Holy crap. You weren't kidding when you said you were a movie buff, huh?"

Tony shrugged. "I got a few."

"A few would imply, like, one cabinet. This is a huge ass collection."

Tony smiled slightly. "Okay, more than a few."

Hannah shook her head. "You're cooking lunch?"

"You said you were hungry," he replied, heading toward the kitchen.

"I thought we'd just get some takeout or something," she said, following him.

"I like cooking sometimes. It's nice to have a reason to make some real lasagna and stuffed peppers."

She smiled. "You're ruining my diet," she teased lightly.

He scoffed. "You're paper thin," he said. "You don't need a diet."

"Did you make garlic bread too?"

"You sound so surprised that I can cook."

"Well, because Ziva hinted that you can't."

"That's because her cooking's better than mine. So, whenever she comes over, I ask her to cook for me."

"So, how do I know that this isn't Ziva's cooking that you're just re-heating?" she asked.

"Because I made a mess in the sink," he replied. "And, I burned my hand."

Hannah smirked. "Did you drop the f-bomb?"

Tony furrowed his brow slightly. "You remember that?"

"Vaguely. I think you were cooking or something."

"Spaghetti. Burned my hand on water."

She nodded. "I just remember getting in trouble for repeating you."

He smiled. "Yeah, your mother wasn't too thrilled with that one. Me, I was too busy laughing."

She smiled. "Of course you were."

He chuckled. "Yeah, that was one of my biggest problems: keeping a straight face when you did something you weren't supposed to do."

"Did Mom know before you had me?"

Tony shook his head. "Nah, for some reason, she thought I would get more serious," he said.

Hannah smirked.

He pulled the food out of the oven, and the two of them helped themselves before taking up residence on his couch. She picked at the lasagna for a second before saying, "Movie or talking?"

He shrugged. "Whatever works for you," he replied, taking a big bite of lasagna.

She took a bite of pepper. "How'd you and Mom meet?"

He smiled. "She was my roommate's girlfriend's sister. Him and Keri orchestrated this surprise birthday party for her, under the guise that he and I were taking Mari out for dinner. Actually, Keri had been there with her boyfriend at the time."

Hannah snickered. "So you stole Mom away then, huh?"

Tony nodded, taking another bite. "Yeah. She only minded when she got pregnant shortly after we started dating, but I knew she was the one. I managed to convince her I had no intention of leaving, and she stayed with me too. I'd like to think it worked out okay, but considering how Keri ended up, I'm not so sure."

She frowned. "It wasn't your fault though, was it?"

He tilted his head back and forth. "Close enough."

"What do you mean?"

He shook his head. "I'll tell you that one when you're older."

She rolled her eyes, causing him to smirk. "Fine," she said. "I'll let that go for now."

"Thank you."

She took another bite off her plate. "So, did Ryan ever know you?"

Tony shook his head again. "I didn't even know he'd survived until they were calling me to tell me he was dead," he explained sadly.

Hannah nodded. "So, I'm your only living child."

"Pretty much."

"You never wanted more kids?"

He shrugged. "Somewhere along the line, I figured it'd happen again for me. Or that I was happy enough just doing my job and trying to prevent tragedies from striking other families. I guess I just never found anyone I cared about half as much as your mother."

"Except the other doctor," she interjected.

He snorted. "Yeah, that didn't work out so well."

"What'd you mean when you said, 'assignment'?"

"I was undercover. Coming across her and dating her just ended up happening."

"What happened?"

He sighed. "She found out I was undercover. It didn't go over so well."

"How so?"

"She later accused me of murder."

Hannah arched her eyebrows. "Yeah, I'd say that didn't go over so well," she commented lightly.

Tony shrugged one shoulder. "Wasn't the first time," he replied.

"That a girlfriend accused you of murder?"

"No, just that I was accused of murder. I think I'm up to three times right now."

She bit her lip. "I'm not entirely sure that's something to be proud of."

He smiled. "Just means I'm doing my job well if I'm pissing people off."

She shook her head.

"Nice to know that's in your genes, huh?" he said jokingly.

"Oh, I'm thrilled at that," she retorted. "I mean, I already got shot once."

"Sorry about that, by the way."

She shook her head again. "It's not your fault. It's his."

He nodded slightly.

"I sure don't hold it against you. If I did, I wouldn't be here."

"True."

She took another bite of the lasagna. "So, you really never came close to getting married again?" she asked.

He shook his head. "For a while, all I wanted to do was crawl under a rock," he said. "Then I decided to start dating, but I couldn't fall for anyone. Commitment just never felt right."

She nodded. "So, let me ask you this. Did you ever tell your coworkers about us?"

"Yeah."

"Before you found me?"

He took a bite of the pepper.

"That's what I thought," she said.

"To be fair, my boss did the same thing," he replied. "Only, they found out about him sooner. And, well, Ziva already knew before the others."

"So, you and your boss are a lot alike."

He shrugged. "So some have said."

"Does he like movies too?"

Tony laughed. "I'm pretty sure he doesn't even know how to use a DVD player."

Hannah gave him a look. "You're kidding, right?"

He shook his head with a big smile.

"Oh, my goodness."

The two of them fell silent for a moment before curiosity got the best of her. "Did you ever think of giving up?" she asked.

"Giving what up?" he responded.

She looked at him again.

"I didn't ever give up on living, or looking for you. I've had some low points in my life, but I always had this feeling that you were out there somewhere. And if I could find you, then maybe it would make things a little better, even when things were tough."

"And, did it work?"

He shrugged again. "Up until the point you got shot. Then… well… that wasn't going to get better."

"I'll work hard to make that not happen again."

"Good."

The two of them smiled and continued chatting while eating lunch. The more he talked to her, the more he saw Keri's intelligence mixed with his easy-going charm. Her organization with his sense of humor. Her drive to succeed mixed with his love of entertainment.

_We did good,_ he thought to himself.

And though he knew it wouldn't always be the easiest relationship, he hoped to continue it with her as long as she'd let him. He might not be the one walking her down the aisle anymore, but at least he knew she was still alive, and would be able to make that trip herself. And, he'd always have those firsts with her: first steps, first smile, first words. First birthday, first Christmas.

"You okay?" she asked, interrupting his thoughts.

"I'm fine," he replied.

"You getting all sentimental on me?"

He chuckled. "Something like that."

She tossed her hair lightly, hair that so closely resembled his while the rest of her features matched Keri's. The pleasant little three and a half year old, who was still fascinated with having a kitty and playing with her blocks, had grown into a very beautiful young woman. Though, one thing was for sure.

He wouldn't hesitate to kill the next person who tried to hurt her.

The End


End file.
